THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 

OF  CALIFORNIA 

LOS  ANGELES 


41 


PULPIT,  PEW  AND  PLATFORM. 


BY 


Rev.  H.  M.  WHARTON,  D.D. 

Author  of  " Gospel  Talks,"  "Curse  and  Chains,  1  &c 


BALTIMORE: 

WHARTON,  BARRON   &  CO., 

No.  10  East  Fayette  Street. 


Copyright  1890, 
By  WHARTON,  BARRON  &  CO. 


PBES3  OP 

TMl  JA9.   B.  BOOQERS  PRINTING  CO.. 

63  *  64  NORTH  SIXTH  6T.. 

PHILADELPHIA. 


PKEFAOE. 


"1 TY  "  Gospel  Talks  "  have  been  so  kindly  received  that 
I  venture  once  again  to  knock  at  the  door  of  public 
favor.  If  you  are  fond  of  variety  you  will  be  suited  here. 
The  table  is  spread,  the  food  is  nothing  extra,  but  I  think 
you  will  find  it  wholesome.  So  without  further  ceremony 
we  will  ask  the  Lord's  blessing  and  you  may  proceed  to 
help  yourself.  If  you  do  not  like  one  dish  try  another, 
and  if  nothing  pleases  you,  hand  the  book  to  your  neigh- 
bor ;  for  that  which  one  does  not  fancy  may  be  the  very 
thing  that  another  would  like. 

Sincerely  yours, 

H.  M.  Wharton. 

Oo  t  /CO  e 


CONTENTS. 


BIOGRAPHICAL :  «*°* 

The  Life  of  Rev.  H.  M.  Wharton,  D.D  .......  1 

SHORT  AND  CRISP  -. 

Heart  Troubles 16 

The  Mind  Diseased 18 

Prayer 22 

Shining  for  Jesus 27 

Lessons  from  the  Birds 29 

Personal  Work 33 

Child  Faith 37 

Backsliders 38 

Good  Works 39 

Trusting  Christ 41 

Which  Side 43 

Saved  from  Drink 47 

A  Talk  to  Children 53 

A  Visit  from  Jesus  .    .  * 58 

Rescuing  the  Perisiiixg 64 

SERMONS : 

Recognition  in  Heaven 70 

Faith  and  Works 85 

Look-  and  Live 95 

v 


vi  CONTENTS. 

PAGE 

The  Heavenly  Race 102 

The  Believer's  Question 113 

The  Joyful  Sound 126 

Our  Father's  Gift 135 

Following  Christ 1-41 

A  Mother's  Prayer l'r»0 

The  Unsearchable  Riches 157 

LECTURES; 

The  Ups  and  Downs  of  Life 171 

My  Second  Trip  to  Europe 211 


PULPIT,  PEW  AND  PLATFORM. 


i. 

BIOGKAPHICAL. 


THE  LIFE  OF  REV.  II.  M.  WHARTON,  D.D. 

BY    M.    B.    WUARTON,    D.D. 

HENRY  MARVIN  WHARTON  was  born  at 
"  Western  View,"  Culpeper  County,  Virginia, 
September  11,  1848.  He  was  the  son  of  Malconi  IT. 
and  Susan  R.  Wharton,  parents  noted  for  their  intelli- 
gence, piety  and  influence  in  the  community.  He  was 
the  youngest  of  eight  children,  and  as  such  was  the  idol 
of  his  parents  and  brothers  and  sisters.  His  mother 
died  when  he  was  thirteen  years  old,  and  when  he  most 
needed  a  mother's  care ;  for  it  was  when  the  storms  of 
■war  were  beating  in  all  their  fury  upon  the  land,  de- 
stroying home.-:  and  driving  the  scattered  members  of 
our  happy  family  circles  into  situations  of  danger,  and 
often  of  demoralization  and  ruin. 

About  the  time  of  his  mother's  death  his  father  was 
forced  to  become  a  refugee  at  Amherst  Court-House, 
Virginia,  where  he  would,  at  least  for  a  time,  be  secure 

1 


2  PULPIT,    PEW   AND    PLATFORM. 

from  the  marauders  who  had  already  deprived  him  of 
the  greater  part  of  his  property. 

The  son's  education  was  necessarily  neglected,  but  he 
was  taught  at  home,  and  became  quite  equal  in  attain- 
ments to  other  youths  of  similar  age,  when  he  entered 
the  army,  first  in  the  character  of  dispensary  clerk  in  the 
hospitals  at  Lynchburg  and  afterwards  as  a  soldier.  lie 
continued  in  the  service  till  he  laid  down  his  arms  at 
Appomattox  Court-House,  the  burial-place  of  the 
Southern  Con i'ederacy. 

On  his  return  from  the  war,  after  acting  for  a  time  as 
depot  agent  at  New  Glasgow,  he  accompanied  his  bro- 
ther, Dr.  John  S.  Wharton,  to  Mexico,  coming  back  at 
the  end  of  a  year  broken  in  health  and  spirits. 

He  was  warmly  received  by  his  devoted  father,  who, 
in  a  short  while,  entered  him  as  a  student  at  Roanoke 
College,  Salem,  Va.,  where  he  made  excellent  progress 
in  his  studies,  and  laid  the  foundation  for  future  useful- 
ness. Returning  home  again,  he  studied  law,  and  was 
admitted  to  the  bar,  before  he  was  of  legal  age,  by  a 
special  act.  For  five  years  he  practiced  his  profession 
at  Amherst  Court-House,  Va.,  and  won  distinction  as 
an  earnest  and  eloquent  pleader.  Judge  Shelley,  of  the 
circuit  in  which  he  lived,  pronounced  him  thc^  most 
promising  young  lawyer  of  his  age  in  the  State.  But 
it  was  during  this  time  that  he  became  addicted  to  the 
habit  of  drinking,  although  he  had  become  a  member 
{  of  the  Episcopal  Church,  and  had  even  acted  occasion- 
ally in  the  capacity  of  lay  reader.      He  was  social  and 


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BIOGRAPHICAL.  6 

popular,  and  became  the  leading  "good  fellow"  of  the 
place,  " practicing,"  as  he  said,  "at  every  bar  in  the 
town." 

The  writer  was  pastor  at  this  time  of  the  Walnut 
Street  Baptist  Church,  in  Louisville,  Kentucky,  and  on 
his  summer  visits  to  Virginia  it  grieved  him  sorely  to 
find  his  youngest  brother  engaged  iu  those  practices 
which  were  whitening  the  head  of  his  venerated  father, 
soon  likely  to  bring  him  down  in  sorrow  to  the  grave. 
The  young  and  erratic  barrister  was  prevailed  upon  to 
accompany  his  brother  to  Louisville,  with  the  hope  that 
a  change  of  place  and  associations  might  result  in  his 
reformation,  and  cause  him  to  lead  a  new  and  bet- 
ter life. 

His  habit  of  drinking  continued  for  awhile  after 
reaching  his  Kentucky  home  ;  and  he  has  related  to 
an  immense  audience  in  Masonic  Temple,  Louisville, 
how  on  one  occasion  he  was  arrested  by  a  policeman,  in 
the  dead  hours  of  the  night,  and  kindly  conducted, 
without  exposure,  to  his  brother's  residence. 

Soon  kind  heaven  smiled  on  the  efforts  for  his  recov- 
ery,  and  he  became  a  true  convert.  He  was  baptized 
by  the  writer,  on  a  good  profession,  in  the  "Walnut 
Street  Baptist  Church,  in  the  spring  of  1874. 

At  once  he  gave  evidence  of  an   earnest  desire  to 
preach  the   gospel,  and  in   a   few   months   entered  the 
Southern  Baptist  Theological  Seminary,  then  at  Green-    - 
ville,  S.  C,  as  a  student  for  the  ministry,     lie  remained 
a  year,  when  he  returned  to  Louisville  and  was  ordained 


4  PULPIT,    PEW  AND    PLATFORM. 

to  the  ministry,  at  the  request  of  the  First  Baptist 
Church  of  Eufaula,  Ala.,  which  desired  his  services. 

His  first  regular  pastorate,  however,  was  the  church 
at  Luray,  Va.,  which,  from  thirty-two  members  when 
he  took  charge,  was  made  a  strong  and  influential  con- 
gregation, the  strongest  indeed  in  all  that  picturesque 
region.  He  was  at  the  same  time  pastor  of  the  church 
at  Front  Royal,  and  rode  and  preached  all  over  the 
beautiful  Valley  of  Virginia,  drawing  great  congrega- 
tions wherever  he  went,  and  impressing  all  with  his 
genius,  his  piety  and  his  consecration.  He  was  fre- 
quently invited  to  hold  protracted  meetings,  in  all  of 
which  he  gave  promise  of  the  wonderful  success  he  was 
to  achieve  in  after  years. 

It  was  while  pastor  at  Luray  that  he  married  Miss 
Julia  Rust,  the  accomplished  daughter  of  Dr.  and  Mrs. 
George  W.  Rust,  as  noble  parents-in-law  as  any  man 
ever  had,  and  for  whom  he  cherished  the  deepest  affec- 
tion. His  devotion  to  his  wife  was  of  that  ardent  na- 
ture which  bordered  on  the  romantic;  hut  alas!  he  was 
destined  to  live  with  her  three  short  years,  when  wife 
and  baby  were  laid  in  a  common  grave!  This  sad 
event  had  a  moulding  influence  on  his  whole  future 
career.  It  is  said  that  an  eminent  musical  instructor, 
in  Paris,  after  training  a  beautiful  American  girl  in  song, 
said  to  her  guardian,  "I  have  clone  all  I  can  for  her. 
Bui  one  thing  is  necessary,  and  she  will  be  perfect,  she 
must  be  crushed."  It  seems  that  this  crushing  blow — 
the    loss   of   wife  and   child — was    necessarv   to    make 


'  \A1U4jmMS 


BIOGRAPHICAL.  O 

young  Wharton  the  tender,  sympathizing  friend  and 
preacher  which  he  has  ever  proven. 

His  next  pastorate  was  the  Lee  Street  Baptist 
Church,  of  Baltimore,  Ktd.,  where  in  ten  weeks  he 
received  into  the  membership  and  baptized  more  than 
two  Hundred  persons.  He  accomplished  a  great  work 
here  for  the  Master,  but  in  such  an  evangelistic  way 
that  his  brethren  throughout  the  country  advised  him 
to  leave  the  pastorate  and  "do  the  work  of  an  evangel- 
ist." Invitations  poured  in  upon  him  from  all  parts  of 
the  country  to  hold  meetings,  many  of  which  he  ac- 
cepted to  the  great  good  of  churches  and  communities 
visited.  About  this  time,  with  Rev.  A.  C.  Barron, 
D.D.,  as  partner,  he  established  the  Baltimore  Baptist, 
a  dollar  newspaper  enterprise  for  his  denomination, 
which,  notwithstanding  predictions  to  the  contrary,  has 
had  a  great  success.  Multitudes  of  subscribers  have  been 
obtained  for  it  from  nearly  all  the  States  of  the  South, 
coming  largely  through  the  influence  of  the  labors  of 
the  evangelist.  The  paper  has  proven  a  great  help  to 
him  in  his  work. 

He  received  many  calls  to  large  and  influential 
churches,  but  preferred  the  idea  of  "building  on  his 
own  foundation,"  in  connection  with  his  revival  work, 
and  organized  the  "Brantley  Memorial  Church,"  named 
in  honor  of  the  lamented  Rev.  \V.  T.  Brantley,  D.D.,  at 
the  time  of  his  death  pastor  of  the  Seventh  Baptist 
Church,  Baltimore.  He  began  with  thirty-two  mem- 
bers, in  a  small,  unpretentious  building,  and  though  ho 


G  PULPIT,  PEW  AND  PLATFORM. 

has  been  absent  mosl  of  the  time  on  his  preaching  tours, 
he  has  kepi  a  steady  oversight  over  the  flock,  returning 
ever  and  anoo  to  hold  meetings  with  them  till  the  little 
one  has  become  nearly  half  a  thousand.  A  new  church 
was  needed,  and  in  order  to  secure  it  lie  submitted  to 
great  pecuniary  sacrifice,  refusing  salaries  of  $3000  and 
§4000,  and  accepting  only  $1800  per  annum  from  the 
church,  the  money  received  for  his  evangelistic  labors 
being  scrupulously  applied  to  the  building  of  the  new 
tabernacle, now  approaching  completion,  with  a  seating 
capacity  of  2000,  and  costing  about  §40,000. 

An  associate  pastor  labors  for  the  church  in  his  ab- 
sence, and  in  this  way  the  cause,  instead  of  suffering,  is 
greatly  advanced,  while  the  country  gets  the  benefit  of 
his  rare  revival  work.  When  the  church  is  completed 
it  will  stand  as  a  memorial,  not  only  of  Dr.  Brantley, 
but  as  a  splendid  monument  to  the  earnest  and  suoa  ss- 
ful  laborer  through  whose  efforts  the  building  has  been 
erected. 

During  recent  years  his  name  has  been  connected  in 
no  small  degree  with  the  current  history  of  the  denom- 
ination, lie  has  traveled  from  New  York  to  Florida, 
and  from  Virginia  to  the  fin-  West,  holding  meetings, 
in  all  of  which  he  has  been  successful. 

Many  great  revivalists  succeed  often,  lint  fail  some- 
times. He  has  never  failed.  The  blessing  oi  God  has 
attended  him  wherever  he  has  has  gone,  and  thousands 
have  been  converted  through  his  instrumentality,  con- 
nected   themselves    with   the   churches,  ami  borne  fruit 


BIOGRAPHICAL.  7 

thai  testified  to  the  genuineness  of  the  change  wrought 
in  them. 

Montgomery,  Alabama,  may  be  taken  as  a  specimen 
of  his  labors.  He  came  there  first  just  after  one  of  the 
most  popular  evangelists  in  the  country  had  failed,  but 
through  his  labors  more  than  one  hundred  converts  were 
adiled  to  the  membership  of  the  First  Baptist  Church, 
while  many  joined  other  churches.  He  came  two  years 
afterwards  to  the  same  congregation  when  one  hundred 
more  were  added  to  the  church,  and  a  greater  interest 
awakened  generally  than  before.  Recently,  after  two 
years,  he  visited  the  city  again,  and  performed  a  work 
quite  equal  in  power  to  that  done  on  previous  occasions. 
More  than  one  hundred  were  converted,  and  a  great 
blessing  enjoyed  by  all  denominations. 

In  Richmond,  Virginia,  he  conducted  the  most  success- 
ful meetings  ever  held  there,  extending  through  two 
months,  and  exceeding  in  power  and  influence  (according 
to  the  statements  of  the  press)  those  held  by  Mr.  Moody. 
The  armory  builing,  seating  more  than  three  thousand 
people,  was  nightly  crowded,  many  hundreds  being 
turned  away  for  want  of  room.  It  is  thought  that  two 
thousand  persons  connected  themselves  with  the  different 
churches  as  the  result  of  these  meetings. 

In  Louisville,  Kentucky,  he  has  held  two  remarkable 
meetings,  resembling  those  held  in  Montgomery,  Rich- 
mond and  elsewhere.  Many  think  that  his  best  work 
was  the  organization,  during  his  last  visit,  of  the  MeFer- 
rau  Memorial  Church,  full-grown  at  its  birth,  aud  rank- 


8  PULPIT,    PEW  AND    PLATFORM. 

ing  only  third  in  wealth  and  influence  to  any  Baptist 
Church  in  the  city. 

He  labored  there  for  one  month;  preaching  at  night  in 
the  church  and  in  the  day  at  Masonic  Temple,  the 
latter  place  being  in  the  heart  of  the  city,  and  great 
crowds  attended  each  service.  Many  were  converted  at 
these  meetings,  who,  added  to  those  who  came  with  let- 
ters from  the  Walnut  Street  and  other  churches,  formed 
the  one  hundred  and  sixty  members  enrolled  at  the  con- 
stitution of  the  new  church,  which  is  destined  in  a  few 
years  to  be  one  of  the  leading  churches  of  that  city. 
Hi'  has  not  only  visited  churches  in  large  cities  and 
towns,  but,  has  gone  as  cheerfully  to  pastorless  churches 
in  villages  and  rural  districts,  and  has  succeeded  in  col- 
lecting great  congregations  in  sparsely-settled  regions, 
in  building  up  the  waste  places  of  Zion,  and  in  causing 
hundreds,  hitherto  "  without  hope  and  without  God," 
to  flock  to  the  standard  of  the  cross. 

He  is  not  alone  a  successful  preacher,  but  one  of  the 
sweetest  of  singers.  No  man  was  ever  blessed  with  a 
richer  voice.  Dr.  J.  B.  Gaston,  the  most  eminent  phy- 
Bician  in  Alabama,  says,  "  I  have  attended  his  meetings 
often,  and  that  which  wins  its  way  to  ray  heart  and 
charms  me  beyond  expression  is  his  matchless  voice,  go- 
ing with  the  ease  of  the  bird-'  sweetesi  notes  from  tenor 
to  baritone,  and  from  baritone  to  treble.  It  is  the  most 
p  irfecl  voice  I  have  ever  known."  While  he  has  never 
had  time  to  make  music  a  special  study,  he  can  with  his 
simple  gospel  solos  thrill  to  ecstasy  where  "Italian  trills 
are  tame." 


BIOGRAPHICAL.  9 

Many  who  read  these  pages  will  remember  the  effect 
produced  by  such  pieces  as  "Hide  thou  me,"  "  The 
mistakes  of  my  life  have  been  many,"  "  My  ain  coun- 
tree,"  "I'm  a  child  of  a  King,"  and  above  all  by  the 
"  Mother's  Prayer."  No  son  was  ever  more  devoted  to 
his  mother's  memory  than  he.  Pier  last  words  to  him, 
"  meet  me  in  Heaven,"  are  ever  ringing  in  his  soul  with 
the  soft  melody  of  an  angel's  song,  and  he  is  never  so 
happy  and  tender  as  when  talking  or  singing  of 
"Mother."  The  "  Mother's  Prayer"  takes  him  back 
to  his  trundle  bed,  and  he  pours  out  his  soul  when  he 
sings  that  simple  song,  and  vast  audiences  are  melted  to 
tears  under  the  influence  of  its  affecting  strains. 

Attractive  as  he  is  as  a  preacher  and  singer,  it  is  to 
be  questioned  if  he  is  not  still  more  attractive  as  a  lec- 
turer. He  has  twice  visited  Europe,  once  with  the  wri- 
ter in  1881,  and  more  recently  as  a  delegate  to  the 
"World's  Sunday-School  Convention.  "While  there  he 
collected  materials  for  two  of  his  most  popular  lectures. 
One  of  these  is  styled  "Rambles  in  Europe,"  the  de- 
mand for  which  will  never  cease.  Since  his  recent 
return  he  has  delivered  in  many  places  a  lecture  equally 
as  popular,  called  "  My  Second  Visit  to  Europe."  His 
lectures,  "Ups  and  Downs"  and  "My  Hearers,"  meet 
everywhere  with  as  gratifying  success.  The  charm  of 
his  lectures  consists  in  his  "holding  the  mirror  up  to 
nature;"  in  telling  things  just  as  they  occurred  ;  in  his 
rich  fund  of  anecdotes  and  illustrations,  especially  in  his 
inimitable  way  of  relating  them  ;  and  in  his  palpable 
moral  hits. 


10  PULPIT,    PEW  AND   PLATFORM. 

When  he  was  a  child  his  mother  used  to  call  him  her 

boy  preacher,  and  so  introduced  him  to  the  neighbors. 
On  one  occasion,  when  refused  some  "preserves,"  of 
which  he  was  very  fond,  he  pouted  and  said,  "  1  am  not 
going  to  be  a  preacher."  "  What  are  you  going  to  be  ?" 
was  asked.  He  replied,  "I  am  going  to  be  an  Irish- 
man." When  hearing  his  Irish  anecdotes,  and  when 
seeing  him  in  the  rdle  of  "  Paddy,"  in  his  lectures,  one 
may  readily  believe  that  he  has  made  good  his  promise, 
and  has  become  not  only  a  preacher,  but  an  Irishman  as 
well. 

In  forming  an  estimate  of  H.  M.  Wharton  as  a 
preacher,  the  first  thing  to  be  noticed  is  his  personnel.  It 
is  as  true  of  the  preacher  as  of  the  poet  (though  not  in 
the  same  degree),  that  he  is  born,  not  made.  Science 
and  art  may  do  much  for  a  man,  but  they  cannot  change 
his  nature  ;  they  cannot  impress  on  one  devoid  of  it  the 
stamj)  of  genius;  they  cannot  impart  those  subtle  qual- 
ities which  are  combined  and  arrayed  in  the  Laboratory 
above,  when  God  says,  "  Let  us  make  man." 

In  personal  appearance  the  subject  of  this  sketch  is  a 
magnificent  specimen  of  his  race.  He  is  about  six  feet 
tall,  and  weighs  about  one  hundred  and  ninety  pounds  ; 
is  straight  and  symmetrical,  muscular  and  strong;  and 
universally  called  handsome.  The  inward  man  corre- 
sponds to  the  outward,  lie  possesses  a  warm  and  loving 
nature,  and  is  in  full  sympathy  with  the  wants  and 
woes  of  his  race.  His  early  experiences  filled  him  well 
for   sympathizing  with   the  erring  and  unfortunate,  and, 


BIOGRAPHICAL.  11 

like  his  Master,  he  can  be  touched  with  a  feeling  for 
their  infirmities,  having  been  in  all  points  tempted  as 
they  are.  His  piety  is  his  chief  strength.  It  was  the 
saying  of  one  of  the  Latin  fathers,  "Pectus  est  quod  the- 
ologium  fecit" — it  is  the  heart  that  makes  the  theolo- 
gian. If  this  be  true,  he  is  a  theologian  of  the  first  mag- 
nitude. Ilev.  Sam.  P.  Jones  speaks  of  a  man  who  is 
eleven-tenths  backbone.  Marvin  Wharton  is  ten-tenths 
heart,  both  as  a  man  and  a  preacher. 

With  such  physical  and  spiritual  endowments,  with  a 
bright  intellect,  with  the  utmost  familiarity  with  the 
plan  of  salvation,  and  with  much  knowledge  of  men  ami 
things;  with  excellent  speaking  powers;  and  in  addi- 
tion with  that  indescribable  but  well-recognized  some- 
thing called  magnetism,  it  cannot  be  thought  strange 
that  he  is  a  powerful  and  effective  preacher,  and  that  the 
most  wonderful  results  follow  his  labors. 

In  estimating  any  preacher,  regard  must  be  had  to  the 
character  of  his  work.  The  preacher  in  question  is  in 
no  sense  a  sensationalist,  but  preaches  the  plain  gospel 
in  a  plain  way.  Cowper  says,  ''Would  I  describe  a 
preacher  such  as  Paul,  were  he  on  earth,  would  hear,  ap- 
prove and  own,  Paul  should  himself  direct  me.  I 
would  trace  his  masterstrokes  and  draw  from  his  design. 
I  would  express  him  simple,  grave,  sincere,  in  language 
plain,  and  plain  in  manners,  much  impressed  himself,  as 
conscious  of  his  awful  charge',  and  anxious  mainly  that 
the  flock  he  feeds  may  tee]  it  too."  Our  evangelist  is 
just  such  a  man,  and  it  is  for  this  reason  that  he  wins 


12  PULPIT,    PEW  AND    PLATFOBM. 

his  way  not  only  to  the  hearts  of  the  common  people,  but 
that  nun  like  Paul,  of  greatest  genius  and  attainments, 
hear  him  gladly.  He  makes  no  attempt  at  preaching 
great  sermons,  though  some  of  his  discourses  rise  to  a 
very  high  standard  of  excellence.  He  prefers,  however, 
to  style  them  "Gospel  Talks,"  his  great  object  being  to 
explain  the  way  of  salvation,  and  induce  sinners  to  ac- 
cept it.  He  is  chaste  and  careful  in  his  utterances,  and 
thinks  it  "pitiful  to  court  a  grin,  when  he  should  woo  a 
soul." 

Many  evangelists  have  sprung  up,  and  drawn  immense 
audiences  by  questionable  methods.  As  the  ludicrous  bor- 
ders very  closely  upon  the  pathetic  they  make  the  happiest 
transitions  "  from  grave  to  gay,  from  lively  to  severe." 
They  pass  from  the  relation  of  revolting,  but  amusing 
anecdotes  to  tender,  and  touching  stories,  so  that  hearers 
but  recently  convulsed  with  laughter  are  all  at  once 
bathed  in  tears,  the  most  wicked  of  them  being  ready  to 
stand  up  od  invitation,  and  say  they  "want  to  go  to 
Heaven  ;"  and  these  are  heralded  forth  as  converts,  when 
each  proves  often  like  Jonah's  gourd  that  sprang  up  in  a 
single  night,  and  withered  as  soon  beneath  the  rising  sun. 

At  a  certain  town  one  of  these  meetings  was  held,  and 
two  hundred  persons  reported  as  converted,  when,  a  year 
later,  one  of  the  leading  men  in  the  place  said.  "Not  one 
of  these  converts  could  now  be  found  with  a  microscope." 
Certain  hard  cases  may  be  reached  by  such  methods,  but 
it  is  to  be  feared  that  they  cause  moreharmto  the  general 
cause  than  good. 


BIOGRAPHICAL.  13 

This  is  not  the  kind  of  work  done  by  H.  M.  Wharton. 
He  makes  it  a  study  to  guard  against  all  excitement,  and 
to  rely  upon  the  plain  presentation  of  the  truth,  with  the 
accompanying  influences  of  the  Holy  Spirit.  The  result 
is  that  nearly  all  who  come  into  the  churches  through  his 
labors  remain  to  be  consistent  Christians  and  good  work- 
ers. Does  this  kind  of  preaching  prove  popular?  Yer- 
ilv,  yes.  Wherever  he  goes,  telling  the  old,  old  story  of 
Jesus  and  his  love,  his  congregations  are  only  limited  by 
the  capacity  of  the  buildings  where  the  services  are  held. 
Though  generally  holding  his  meetings  in  Baptist 
Churches,  all  denominations  attend,  lend  a  helping  hand 
to  his  work,  and  receive  great  benefits  therefrom 
Many  persons,  infatuated  with  the  man  and  his  work,  ac- 
company him  from  meeting  to  meeting,  and  sometimes 
from  State  to  State,  in  order  to  enjoy  his  services;  while 
the  newspapers,  religious,  and  secular  teem  with  reports 
of  the  services. 

But  popularity  is  not  what  he  desires  ;  he  hides  him- 
self behind  the  cross  when  he  preaches,  and  when  the 
results  are  reached  he  does  not  parade  them  before  the 
public.  He  never  mentions  in  his  reports  of  his  meeting 
the  number  converted,  nor  does  he  give  any  intimation 
of  the  enthusiasm  created  in  communities  by  his  efforts. 
He  generally  passes  the  subject  by  with  some  such  re- 
mark as  "  we  have  had  a  good  meeting,"  or  "  the  Lord 
greatly  blessed  us.  To  Him  be  all  the  praise."  He  has 
never  "coquetted"  with  a  church  in  order  to  have  the 
honor  of  a  call.      Several  of  our  largest  churches  have 


14  PULPIT,   PEW  AND    PLATFORM. 

assured  him  of  a  unanimous  call,  if  ho  would  hut  say 
the  word,  but  ho  did  not  wish  to  go,  and  therefore  did  not 
say  the  word.  When  the  writer  was  requested  to  pre- 
pare this  sketch  he  said,  with  characteristic  humility: 
"  J  am  convinced  that  a  short  modest  sketch  hy  you  will 
he  the  thing.  Not  fulsome,  but  just  as  might  be  expect- 
ed from  a  brother."  If  too  much  red  has  been  put  in 
the  brush  it  is  not  his  fault,  but  no  one  acquainted  with 
the  subject  will  say  that  the  picture  lias  been  overdrawn. 

It  goes  without  saying  that  he  is  one  of  the  busiest  of 
men.  Though  holding  from  month  to  month,  and  from 
year  to  year,  generally,  two  services  daily,  and  often 
three  or  four  on  the  Sabbath,  he  has  found  time  to  give 
his  attention  to  other  things.  He  writes  regularly  for 
the  Baltimore  Baptist,  holding  communication  in  this 
way  with  the  numerous  friends  made  during  his  meet- 
ings, lie  is  President  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  of  the 
Luray  Female  Institute,  and  looks  after  its  interests 
with  great  care. 

In  connection  with  the  Baltimore  Baptist  he  has  con- 
ducted, by  the  aid  of  others,  a  successful  publishing 
business.  lie  engaged  in  a  debate  with  a  Catholic  Priest 
in  Baltimore,  and  held  up  the  errors  of  the  great  hie- 
rarchy to  the  satisfaction  of  his  friends  and  the  complete 
discomfiture  of  his  opponent.  His  sermons  on  this 
occasion  have  been  published  in  pamphlet  form.  He 
has  published  a  volume  of  sermons  and  addresses  which 
has  met  with  greal  popularity  and  a  wide  sale.  He  has 
been  especially  useful  to  the  cause  of  Temperance,  and 


BIOGRAPHICAL.  15 

has  frequently  lectured  with  great  power  before  the  Sons 
of  Temperance,  the  Good  Templars  and  the  Women's 
Christian  Temperance  Unions.  He  suffered  so  terribly 
from  intemperance  in  his  earlier  years,  that  he  has  be- 
come the  implacable  foe  of  liquor-drinking  and  liquor- 
selling. 

The  degree  of  D.D.,  unsought  and  undesired,  was  con- 
ferred upon  him  by  Howard  College,  at  the  last  com- 
mencement. He  is  scarcely  yet  in  the  prime  of  life,  and, 
of  course,  gives  promise  for  still  more  extended  useful- 
ness. May  he  whose  he  is,  and  whom  he  serves,  give  ever- 
increasing  seals  to  his  ministry ;  and  may  he  at  last  real- 
ize in  all  its  fullness  the  blessedness  of  the  promise, 
"They  that  be  wise  shall  shine  as  the  brightness  of  the 
firmament,  and  they  that  turn  many  to  righteousness  as 
the  stars  forever  and  ever  !  " 

Montgomery,  Ala.,  August  1,  1890. 


I 


II. 

SHORT    AND    CRISP. 


HEART  TROUBLES. 

"  Lit  not  your  heart  be  troubled,  ye  believe  in  God,  believe  also  in  me." 

IX  the  early  days  of  ray  ministry  I  was  pastor  of  a 
village  church.  One  day  a  mother  came  to  me  and 
said  she  had  a  daughter,  a  young  lady  who  had  been  con- 
fined to  her  bed  with  a  spinal  disease  three  years.  That 
she  was  very  nervous  and  could  not  stand  excitement, 
but  she  was  not  a  Christian  and  wished  me  to  come  and 
preach  a  short  sermon  beside  her  bed.  As  it  was  the 
wish  of  the  young  lady  herself,  I  of  course  consented. 
So  I  fixed  up  a  little  talk  in  my  mind,  got  on  my  horse 
and  rode  over  to  the  house.  Only  the  family  were 
admitted  into  the  room.  A  curtain  hung  across  the  door- 
way to  prevent  the  slightest  breath  of  air  from  touching 
the  frail  form  of  the  little  sufferer. 

I  went  in,  much  embarrassed  and  it  grew  on  me  as  I 
undertook  to  conduct  the  novel  service.  I  would  rather 
preach  to  three  thousand  people  than  three,  any  time. 
But  I  got  along  some  way  until  I  rose  to  take  my  text, 
when  to  my  surprise,  the  sick  lady  said,  "Mr.  Wharton, 
if  you  have  no  decided  urcfcrence  as  to  your  text,  I 
16 


SHOTtT   AND   CRISP.  17 

have    one    I    would    like    you    to  preach  from."     She 
almost  took  my  breath  when  she  said  that.     Whatmust 

I  do  ?  Fear  said,  stick  to  the  text  you  have.  A  desire 
to  please  her  urged  me  to  do  her  will.  At  any  rate,  I 
concluded  to  ask  for  her  text  and  then  decline  if  it  was 
more  than  I  could  manage.  So  I  meekly  inquired, 
"  What  is  the  text  you  would  like  me  to  preach  from  ?  " 
She  answered,  "  Let  not  your  heart  be  troubled,  ye 
believe  in  God,  believe  also  in  me."  It  was  not  new  to 
me.  There  are  chapters  in  the  Bible  like  the  homes  of 
our  friends.  We  can  drop  in  any  time  and  spend  a 
pleasant  half  hour.  Every  Christian  has  a  path  to  the 
door  of  the  fourteenth  of  John.  So  I  launched  out  by 
remarking  that  all  of  us  have  our  troubles.  You  have 
yours,  I  have  mine.  Most  of  our  troubles  are  heart 
troubles.  The  objects  we  most  dearly  love,  are  some- 
times made  the  source  of  sorrow.  A  precious  compan- 
ion is  taken  ;  a  darling  boy  grows  up  and  becomes  dis- 
sipated ;  disease  smites  a  rare  flower  in  the  home  and  it 
lies  withered  under  the  blighting  power.  And  then, 
too,  much  trouble  rises  right  out  of  the  heart.  How 
sin  pains  us  !  How  anxious  we  are  about  our  salva- 
tion !  But  there  is  a  remedy  for  this  trouble.  It  never 
fails.  No  matter  how  long-standing  or  deep-seated  the 
disease,  this  remedy  will  reach  the  case.  It  is  Jesus. 
He  made  the  heart  and  knows  its  every  ill.  But  the 
remedy  must  be  applied.  You  may  have  the  best  rem- 
edies in  the  world,  and  if  they  are  not  applied  they  will 
do  you  no  good.  Now  how  shall  this  unfailing  remedy 
2 


18  PULPIT,    PEW  AND    PLATFORM. 

be  applied  ?  By  faith.  "  Let  not  your  heart  be  trou- 
bled, ye  believe  in  God,  believe  also  in  me."  That's  it — 
believe  in  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  and  He  will  cure  your 
heart,  no  matter  what  the  trouble  is.  Just  put  your 
trust  in  him.  He  will  make  your  bed  in  sickness  ;  He 
will  quiet  your  nerves  and  help  you  to  have  patience ; 
He  will  forgive  your  sins  and  save  your  soul  ;  and  byc- 
and-bye,  He  will  tell  you  why  you  had  to  suffer  and 
show  you  that  it  was  all  right  and  all  for  the  best. 

So  ended  my  little  sermon  and  I  went  away.  Some 
time  afterwards,  she  was  brought  into  my  church  one 
day  in  an  invalid  chair.  After  the  services  were  ove:  1 
went  down  to  speak  to  her.  She  was  sweetly  trusting 
her  Saviour  and  dated  her  conversion  to  the  visit  and 
the  talk  from  her  text  at  her  bedside.  The  Lord  grant 
that  the  one  who  reads  this  may  find  in  Jesus  the  friend 
and  Saviour  who  is  ever  ready  to  relieve  the  troubled 
heart. 

THE  MIND  DISEASED. 

"  Canst  thou  not  minister  to  a  mind  diseased,  pluck  from  the  memory  a 
rooted  sorrow,  rub  out  the  written  troubles  of  the  brain,  and  with  some 
sweet  oblivious  antidote  cleanse  the  stuffed  bosom  of  this  jwilous  stuff  that 
weirjhs  upon  the  heart?" 

THE  quick  ring  of  the  door- bell  was  heard  as  the 
physician  sat  eating  his  dinner  in  a  hurry,  fur 
there  were  many  sick,  and  he  was  on  the  go  all  the 
time.  The  servant  answered  the  call  and  reported  that 
a  strange-looking  gentleman  was  up  stairs  and  wished 


SHORT   AND   CRISP.  19 

to  see  the  doctor  at  once.  When  he  entered  the  room 
he  found  his  caller  walking  the  floor  and  greatly  ex- 
cited. He  met  the  doctor  in  the  middle  of  the  floor, 
showed  him  the  back  of  his  hand,  which  was  red  from 
rubbing,  and  said  :  "  Doctor,  there  is  a  spot  of  blood  on 
my  hand  and  I  can't  wash  it  off ;  I  want  you  to  take 
your  knife  and  cut  it  out."  The  doctor  examined  the 
hand  carefully,  and,  looking  in  the  man's  face,  saw  that 
he  was  deranged.  He  had  him  arrested,  and  soon 
learned  the  state  of  the  case.  The  man  was  a  murderer. 
When  he  committed  the  deed  a  drop  of  the  blood  of  his 
victim  had  fallen  on  his  hand  and  there  it  stayed — not 
in  reality,  but  in  imagination.  That  blood  was  in  his 
mind,  and  there  was  no  water  on  earth  that  could  wash 
it  out.  So  sin  stains  the  soul.  So  in  our  minds  there 
are  sins  which  rankle  and  distress  us  until  we  sink  be- 
neath the  burden.  Is  there  no  remedy  ?  Where  is  the 
antidote  for  the  eating,  consuming  poison?  It  is  the 
blood  of  Jesus.  Though  your  sins  be  as  scarlet  He  will 
make  you  whiter  than  the  snow.  Have  you  ever  com- 
mitted a  great  sin,  and  does  it  prey  upon  you  until  you 
feel  that  it  will  crush  and  destroy  you  ?  Suffer  no  longer. 
Take  it  at  once  to  Jesus.  Go  without  delay  to  the  Great 
Physician.  You  may  be  a  Christian  and  have  sinned, 
fallen  in  shame  and  disgrace.  Lift  up  your  head. 
Look  into  His  face.  Hear  Him  cry,  "  Thy  sins  arc 
forgiven  thee,  go  in  peace."  "The  blood  of  Jesus  Christ 
eleanseth  from  all  sin."  "Bless  the  Lord,  Oh  my 
soul,  and  all  that  is  within  me  bless  his  holy  name  ;  He 


20  PULPTT,    PEW  A\n    PLATFORM. 

healeth  all  thy  diseases,  He  pardonetb  all  thy  iniqui- 
ties." 

A  very  distinguished  physician  was  once  visited  by  a 
prominent  citizen,  who  said  to  him,  "There  is  something 
the  matter  with  me  and  I  don't  know  what  it  is;  will 
yon  please  examine  me,  and  see  what  yon  can  do  for 
me?"  The  doctor  made  a  faithful  examination  and 
couldn't  find  anything  the  matter.  Finally  he  told  his 
patient  so  :  "  Your  body  is  all  right.  Your  lungs  are 
sound  ;  your  heart  beats  all  right.  If  there  is  anything 
wrong  it  must  be  your  mind."  "Ah,  that  is  it!"  said 
the  man ;  "  it  is  ray  mind.  There  is  a  question  that 
haunts  me  by  day  and  night.  It  is  in  my  waking 
thoughts;  it  disturbs  my  dreams.  It  is  this — ETER- 
NITY !  and  where  shall  it  find  you.  Eternity  !  and 
where  shall  it  find  you!  Doctor,  if  I  don't  get  that 
question  settled  I  shall  lose  my  mind.  I  can't  stand  it  ! 
Oh,  I  am  miserable!"  The  doctor  was  a  Christian. 
One  of  the  greatest  blessings  to  any  community  is  a 
Christian  physician.  God  forbid  that  we  should  have 
an  infidel  doctor  fooling  around  us  when  we  come  to 
die.  The  good  man  looked  calmly  into  the  face  of  his 
distracted  patient  and  said  to  him,  slowly  and  emphati- 
cally, "My  friend,  you  have  come  to  the  wrong  doctor. 
There  is  one  who  can  cure  you;  I  will  take  you  to  Him 
if  you  wish  to  go."  "Go?"  replied  the  man  ;  "why, 
certainly  I  will.  I  will  go  any  where,  pay  any  price  ;  lead 
on,  lead  on,  J  will  follow."  "  You  will  not  have  to  go  far, 
and  it  will   not  cost  you  a  cent,"  said  the  doctor,  as  he 


SHORT   AND   CRISP.  21 

walked  to  the  door,  locked  it  and  came  back.  "Just 
kneel  down  here  by  me."  Side  by  side  they  knelt.  He 
laid  the  case  before  the  Lord  and  prayed  for  help.  As 
he  prayed  the  Spirit  worked — the  blessing  came.  When 
they  rose  from  their  knees  the  doctor  said :  "  I  have 
only  a  word  to  say.  Your  new  Doctor  will  go  with 
you.  He  will  watch  every  symptom  and  promptly 
meet  it.  Do  what  He  tells  you  and  all  will  be  well. 
Here  are  the  directions  :  Take  this  little  Testament  and 
follow  its  instructions.  AY  rite  me  how  you  get  along. 
Good  bye,  and  don't  forget  to  let  me  hear  from  you 
soon." 

In  a  few  days  he  received  the  following  note : 

Dr.  


My  Dear  Brother : — The  question  is  answered.  Eternity  will  find 
me  with  -Jesus,  :it  the  right  hand  of  God.  I  have  perfect  peace  and 
joy.  Every  day  brings  me  new  blessings,  and  more  and  more  do  I 
love  Him  who  has  ministered  to  my  distracted  mind  and  comforted  my 
troubled  heart.  I  cannot  find  words  to  thank  you  for  leading  me  to 
the  One  who  has  saved  my  soul  forever.  It  shall  be  my  aim,  now, 
to  tell  others  of  the  Saviour  who  has  done  so  much  for  me. 

Yours  in  Him, 


To  think  that  all  this  is  true,  and  that  we  may  ac- 
tually take  all  our  sorrows  and  troubles  to  Him  and  He 
will  relieve  the  mind  of  every  care.     Blessed  reality  ! 

"Pie  makes  the  wounded  spirit  whole 
And  calms  the  troubled  breast. 
'Tis  manna  to  the  hungry  soul, 
And  to  the  weary,  Rest." 


22  PULPIT,   PEW  AND    PLATFORM. 


PR\YER. 

"Ask,  and  ye  shall  receive..  Are  not  five  sparrows  sold  for  two  far- 
things  t  mill  not  one  of  them  is  forgotten  before  God.  Even  the  very  hairs 
of  your  head  are  all  numbered.  Fear  no!,  therefore,  ye  are  of  more  value 
than  many  sparrows." 

THESE  precious  words  of  Jesus  have  been  fulfilled 
in  your  life  and  mine  again  and  again.  Many 
times  the  blessings  have  come,  and  we  did  not  stop  to 
think  of  the  kind  hand  that  brought  them,  or  the  warm 
love  that  prompted  the  gift.  Even  in  the  smallest  af- 
fairs  of  life  He  has  been  present,  and  regarded  nothing 
as  little  which  contributed  to  the  happiness  and  well 
being  of  his  disciple.  We  laugh,  sometimes,  when  we 
hear  that  a  child  has  asked  the  Lord  for  a  new  knife,  or 
written  God  a  letter  for  a  saddle,  but  why  should  it 
not  be  so?  The  child  faith  that  runs  to  Him  with  the 
slightest  pain,  or  holds  out  its  hand  fur  the  most  trifling 
tiling,  is  the  faith  that  the  Lord  delights  to  honor. 

I  was  sitting  one  evening  in  the  parlor  of  a  pastor's 
home.  It  was  one  of  those  bright,  calm  days  early  in 
November,  when  the  sun  shines  without  a  cloud,  a 
solemn  stillness  pervades  the  air,  and  when  nature's 
dress  looks  the  prettiest,  just  before  the  frost  forces  her 
to  take  it  off  and  put  on  her  winter  wear.  AVe  were 
Hearing  the  close  of  a  gracious  revival.  The  hand  of 
the  Lord  had  been  with  us,  and  joy  filled  our  hearts. 
Is  there  any  happiness  in  the  world  like  that  which  the 
Spirit  brings?      Christians  revived,  wanderers  restored, 


SHOUT    AND    CRISP.  23 

souls  converted,  wives  made  happy,  mothers  shouting 
for  joy  and  the  angels  crowding  around  to  join  in  the 
songs  of  praise  to  the  blessed  Redeemer. 

As  we  sat  talking  the  pastor  looked  out  at  the  win- 
dow and  said  :  "  There  comes  a  good  womau.  She  is 
poor,  and  so  very  deaf  that  she  can  hardly  hear  you 
when  you  speak  at  the  top  of  your  voice,  and  she 
has  had  a  great  deal  of  trouble,  but  you  listen  to  her 
talk  and  it  will  surprise  and  delight  you.''  In  a 
minute  she  walked  in  ;  quite  dignified  and  pleasant;  she 
spoke  to  us  all  and  took  her  seat.  I  should  say  she 
was  fifty  years  of  age,  a  fine  face,  large  expressive 
eyes,  and  as  she  removed  her  hat  a  splendid  suit  of 
black  haircoveredher  head,  as  well  shaped  as  you  would 
wish  to  see.  When  introduced  to  her  I  remarked  (if 
it  could  be  called  a  remark  when,  putting  my  lips  to 
her  ear,  I  lifted  my  voice  as  if  speaking  to  a  multi- 
tude) that  a  youth  of  the  same  name  had  made  a 
profession  of  conversion  the  night  before.  "  Oh,  yes," 
she  said;  "it  was  my  son,  and  I  have  come  to  thank 
you  for  it.  This  is  the  happiest  day  of  my  life.  I  tell 
you,  brother,  the  Lord  has  been  good  to  me.  I  have 
seen  a  hard  time  in  my  life,  but  He  has  always  been 
with  me,  and  taken  mighty  good  care  of  me."  The 
pastor's  wife,  who  was  sitting  by  her,  and  affectionately 
acted  as  interpreter,  said  :  "  Tell  Mr.  \Vharton  about 
the  time  you  asked  the  Lord  to  send  you  some  sugar 
to  put  in  your  coffee."  At  this  she  laughed  quietly 
and  said  :    "  He    doesn't  want  to    hear  that."       I    iia- 


24  PULPIT,    PEW  AND    PLATFORM. 

sured  her  I  did.  She  went  on  :  "  I  could  tell  him 
how  the  Lord  sent  me  a  set  of  false  teeth,  too,  and  a 
pair  of  gold  spectacles.  You  know,  Brother  Wharton, 
when  a  body  has  no  teeth  and  can't  chew  their  food 
well  it  don't  agree  with  them.  Well,  I  asked  the 
Lord  if  it  was  His  will  would  He  send  me  some 
teeth.  I  don't  want  any  thing  that  it  isn't  His  will  to 
give.  And  I  couldn't  see  good,  and  I  asked  Him  for  a 
pair  of  spectacles.  Well,  He  sent  me  a  young  man  to 
board  with  me,  and  he  stayed  there  until  I  had  enough 
money  to  buy  the  teeth,  and  the  man  didn't  charge  as 
much  as  the  regular  price,  so  there  was  enough  left 
over  to  buy  the  spectacles.  Now,  don't  you  think  the 
Lord  was  good  to  do  that?"  My  friend  insisted  that 
she  should  tell  me  about  the  sugar,  so  she  continued  : 
"  I  am  mighty  fond  of  coffee,  but  I  don't  think  it 
tastes  good  without  sugar.  My  husband  is  a  me- 
chanic, and  sometimes  he  is  out  of  work,  and  we  need 
money.  Well,  one  day  I  wanted  some  sugar  so  bad 
and  meal  time  was  coming  on,  that  I  thought  I  would 
ask  the  Lord  for  it.  You  know  He  says  He  will 
give  us  what  is  best  for  us,  and  I  went  up  stairs  and 
knelt  down  right  Inside  the  cradle  where  I  had 
rocked  all  my  children.  You  know,  brother  Whar- 
ton, a  body  must  feel  right  tender  when  they  do  that. 
I  got  to  crying,  and  it  seemed  like  my  heart  would 
break  when  I  thought  how  poor  I  was,  and  didn't 
even  have  sugar  to  put  in  my  coffee.  All  at  once 
the  burden    seemed  to    be    lifted,  and  I  got  right  up 


SHORT   AND   CRISP.  25 

and  went  in  the  other  room  to  wash  my  faro,  I  had 
been  crying  so,  and  I  heard  somebody  knock  at  the 
door.  I  went  down,  and  there  was  a  colored  woman 
with  material  for  a  dress  she  wanted  me  to  make,  and 
asked  me  if  I  could  do  it,  and  have  it  ready  Saturday 
night,  and  what  would  I  charge.  I  told  her  a  dollar, 
and  she  said  she  had  that  and  she  had  better  pay  me 
then,  if  she  didn't  she  would  be  sure  to  spend  it  before 
the  dress  was  done.  So  I  took  it,  and  had  sugar  to  put 
in  my  coffee  before  I  stuck  a  needle  in  the  dress.  Now, 
don't  you  know  the  Lord  was  good  to  answer 
my  prayer  like  that '? "  She  paused.  We  were 
touched  by  the  simple  story  of  her  childlike  prayer, 
but  who  would  dare  suggest  any  other  conclusion 
than  the  one  her  heart  had  reached.  I  asked  that  she 
would  give  another  incident.  "  Well,"  she  said,  and 
her  great  black  eyes  rilled  with  tears ;  "  I  believe  He 
answered  my  prayer  about  my  boy.  My  Bobby  was  a 
kind  good  son,  but  he  was  led  off  sometimes,  and  I  got 
uneasy  about  him.  Many  a  time  after  he  had  gone  to 
bed  and  was  asleep  I  would  steal  into  his  room  and 
kneel  down  beside  his  bed  and  pray  for  him.  Then  he 
was  taken  sick,  and  got  worse  all  the  time.  I  would  go 
in  the  next  room  to  him  and  pray  every  chance  I  got. 
I •  burieu  my  head  in  a  bolster  so  he  couldn't  hear  me 
crying,  I  just  begged  the  Lord  to  make  my  child  a 
Christian  ;  I  didn't  ask  Plini  to  spare  my  boy  to  me  so 
much  as  to  save  him.  I  would  rather  he  would  die  a 
Christian   than  live  and  not   be  one.     One  day  I  saw 


26  PULPIT,    PEW  AND    PLATFORM. 

our  pastor  coming,  and  I  said:  'Bobby,  won't  you  let 
me  bring-  him  in  to  see  you?'  He  said,  '  Yes,  mamma, 
I  sent  for  him.'  I  surely  was  glad  to  hear  that.  Then 
he  said,  '  Mamma,  I  have  thought  a  heap  more  about  re- 
ligion than  I  made  out,  and  many  times  when  you  have 
come  into  my  room  and  thought  I  was  asleep,  I  wasn't 
at  all,  but  laid  there  and  listened  to  you  sob,  and  I 
knew  you  were  praying  for  me.  I  am  going  to  die, 
mamma,  but  it  will  be  a  blessed  thing  if  my  death  will 
make  a  better  man  of  papa.'  The  pastor  came  in,  and 
we  had  a  mighty  good  time  together.  My  sweet  child 
died,  but  it  seems  to  me  ever  since  that  it's  been  a  bless- 
ing. His  father  is  a  better  man,  and  it  has  helped  me. 
It's  not  natural  for  me  to  be  good,  Brother  Wharton ;  I 
have  to  fight  for  every  inch  of  ground  I  get,  but  it  looks 
to  me  like  I  know  how  to  pray  for  poor,  perishing  sin- 
ners now  better  than  ever,  since  I  lost  my  Bobby. 
Don't  you  think  it's  an  honor  for  a  woman  to  have  a 
son  eighteen  years  old  to  die  a  Christian?"  When  she 
finished  this  sweet  story  her  face  was  bathed  in  tears,  and 
yet  she  was  laughing  through  it  all.  I  felt  all  choked 
and  blind  myself,  and  soon  found  that  every  body  in 
the  room  was  in  the  same  fix.  We  wept  and  rejoiced 
with  God's  poor,  suffering,  yet  triumphant,  child.  She 
had  no  grave  for  her  boy,  and  a  good  man  told  her  to 
bury  him  in  his  lot  in  the  cemetery.  They  tell  me  that 
almost  any  day  the  loving  mother  may  be  seen  tenderly 
caring  for  the  graves,  not  only  of  her  son,  but  of  all  in 
the  good  man's  lot.     She  is  perfectly  deaf  to  the  world 


SHORT   AND   CRISP.  27 

around  her,  but  what  a  blessed  world  of  joy  there  is 
within.  Shut  in  with  Jesus,  she  holds  eternal  com- 
munion with  Him,  and  He  supplies  her  every  need. 
She  believes  in  prayer,  and  nothing  is  too  little  to  take 
to  her  Lord. 


SHINING  FOR  JESUS. 

"Let   your  light  so  shine,  that  others,,  seeing  your  good  works,  may 
glorify  your  Father  in  Heaven" 

WERE  you  ever  on  the  ocean  ?  It  is  a  busy  place  some- 
times, especially  when  the  storms  come,  and  the 
winds  blow  hard  and  the  waves  roll  high.  Every 
sailor  has  to  be  at  his  post  and  do  what  he  cau  to  save 
the  ship.  Once  on  a  stormy  night,  one  of  the  sailors 
was  sick  j  he  could  not  do  much  but  was  willing  to  try. 
His  captain  told  him  he  had  better  go  down  and  go  to 
bed,  as  he  was  not  able  to  do  much.  When  he  got  to 
his  room  he  felt  depressed.  He  was  a  good  sailor  and 
was  hurt  that  he  could  do  so  little  for  the  gallant  ship. 
Just  then  he  heard  the  cry,  "Man  overboard!  Man 
OVERBOARD  !  "  His  first  thought  was  to  run  upon  deck  ; 
but  what  could  he  do?  He  had  lighted  his  little  lamp, 
so  he  ran  and  held  that  at  the  port-hole  and  the  feeble 
rays  fell  on  the  water  so  that  the  other  sailors  could  see  the 
drowning  man  and  saved  him.  Xow  my  friends,  you 
aud  I  cannot  do  much  at  best,  and  sometimes  we  feel 
right  sad  about  it,  but  let  us  hold  our  light  out  in  the 
dark  and  it  may,  yes,  it  will,  prove  a  blessing  to  others. 


28  PULPIT,    PKW  AND    PLATFORM. 

u  Let  tlif  Lower  lights  be  burning, 
Send  a  gleam  across  the  wave; 
Some  poor  fainting,  struggling  seaman 
You  may  rescue,  you  may  save." 

A  gentleman  who  lived  near  the  bank  of  a  river  kept 
a  boat  chained  to  a  tree  to  cross  over  in  whenever  he 
wished  to  go  to  the  other  side.  One  day  he  had  to  go 
some  distance,  so  he  made  an  early  start  in  order  to  get 
back  before  night.  But  a  great  rain  came  up  in  the 
afternoon  which  detained  him,  and  while  he  was  wait- 
ing the  river  was  rising.  It  was  late  and  dark  when  he 
reached  the  river-side.  The  angry  waters  roared  and 
raged  as  if  to  warn  him  not  to  risk  his  life  upon  them. 
But  he  was  anxious  to  get  home  and  started  out  on  the 
perilous  stream.  Soon  he  found  that  his  boat  was  drift- 
ing, and  he  commenced  to  call  for  help  at  the  top  of  his 
voice.  Presently  he  saw  a  light  away  across  the  river,  and 
he  heard  a  sweet  voice  saying, "  Come  this  way,  papa  !  Come 
this  way."  It  was  his  little  boy  holding  the  lamp,  and  his 
father  pulled  hard  on  his  oars  and  watched  the  light.  In 
a  few  minutes  he  stepped  ashore  and  clasped  his  little 
rescuer  in  his  arms.  So  I  think  there  are  many  little 
loved  ones  on  the  other  side,  like  lights  along  the  shore, 
and  they  are  saying  to  their  fathers  and  mothers, 
4<  Come  this  way."  Yes,  and  some  of  us  would  not  be 
in  the  road  we  are  to-day,  nor  would  we  have  the  hope 
that  fill-  our  heart,  but  for  the  fact  that  our  loved  ones 
have  gone  before,  and  every  day  and  hour  their  precious 
lives  appeal    to   us  to  come  on  where  they  are.     Let  us 


SHORT   AND   CRISP.  29 

shine  as  we  go  and  light  the  feet  of  other  weary  travelers 
to  our  home.  No  higher  words  of  commendation  could 
be  spoken,  than  those  of  Jesus,  to  the  memory  of  one 
who  gave  his  life  for  the  cause,  "  He  was  a  burning  and 
a  shining  light." 


LESSONS  FROM  THE  BIRDS. 

".1  bird  of  (he  air . shall  carry  the  voice  and  that  which  hath  wings  shall 
tell  1h 

A  ROBIN  loves  to  build  in  the  cedars  in  the  yard, 
and  he  will  let  you  feed  him,  and  learn  from  him 
if  you  will.  One  day  a  little  redbreast  came  to  a  win- 
dow to  get  his  crumbs,  and  seemed  very  thoughtful  and 
lonely.  He  went  away  and  stayed  several  days  and 
came  back,  married.  Yes,  and  brought  his  little  wife 
with  him,  and  they  both  were  happy  and  ate  crumbs 
together.  Then  they  both  stayed  away  some  time,  ex- 
cept that  he  would  come  occasionally,  until,  at  last,  here 
they  came  with  two  little  children.  After  they  got 
their  breakfast  they  flew  down  on  the  ground  and  were 
having  a  good  time,  when  suddenly  the  father  screamed 
out  and  flew  up  in  the  tree  with  one  of  the  young  ones, 
but  the  mother  and  the  other  one  didn't  go.  All  of  a 
sudden  the  mother  fell  aboard  of  the  little  thing  and 
pecked  and  beat  it  as  if  she  would  kill  her  child,  and  kept 
on  till  the  little  fledgeling  by  a  desperate  effort,  flew  up  on 
a  limb,  and  just  at  that  instant  a  great  big  cat  jumped 
right  on  the  spot  where  the  birds  had  been.     I  reckon 


30  PULPIT,    PEW  AND   PLATFORM. 

the  child  bird  wondered  what  made  mother  so  cruel  and 
its  little  back  was  bleeding-,  but  better  that  than  the 
rough  claws  and  sharp  teeth  of  the  cat.  So  it  is  we  are 
afflicted  for  our  good.  Onr  parents  have  to  punish  us, 
and  our  Heavenly  Father  must  smite  us  sometimes  to 
save  us  from  destruction.  "  As  an  eagle  stirreth  up  her 
nest,  fluttcreth  over  her  young,  spreadeth  abroad  her 
wings,  taketh  them,  beareth  them  on  her  wings,  so  the 
Lord  alone  did  lead  him."  And  so  the  Lord  has  often 
broken  us  up,  but  it  has  been  for  our  good. 

They  say  the  little  English  sparrows  are  a  nuisance 
and  people  try  to  kill  them  out  because  they  drive  other 
birds  away.  But  God  cares  for  the  little  sparrows  and 
they  are  worthy  of  our  attention  also.  I  was  hurrying 
along  the  street  in  Baltimore  one  rainy  day,  my  um- 
brella over  me  and  the  rain  pouring  down,  when,  turn- 
ing a  corner,  I  saw  on  the  cold  marble  steps  of  a  house 
two  little  birds.  It  was  a  large  sparrow  and  a  small 
one,  which  I  took  to  be  a  mother  and  her  child.  The 
mother  was  trying  every  way  to  persuade  her  little  one 
to  fly  up  into  a  maple  above  them  and  get  out  of  the 
rain,  and  out  of  danger,  for  it  was  the  step  of  a  public 
building,  and  the  poor  thing  was  likely  to  be  trampled 
to  death.  But  the  young  bird  had  but  few  feathers  and 
they  were  wet,  and  do  what  it  would  it  could  not  fly. 
The  anxious  mother  would  chatter  away  and  tell  how 
dangerous  it  was  to  be  there,  and  how  nice  it  was  to  be 
up  in  the  tree.  Then  she  would  fly  up  in  the  tree  to 
show  the  little  bird  what  to  do,  but  still  it  couldn't  fly. 


SHORT    AND    CRISP.  31 

I  stood  there  looking  on  wondering  what  she  would  do 
next.     The  mother's  tender  care,  the  persevering  efforts 

to  save  her  little  one,  the  repeated  example,  flying  up 
to  teach  her  child  to  rise  above  danger,  all  seemed  as 
plain  to  me  as  the  efforts  of  a  human  being.  After  sli3 
had  tried  again  and  again  and  could  not  get  the  little 
one  out  of  the  rain,  the  mother  bird  came  down  and 
stood  there  beside  her  child  as  close  as  she  could  get, 
and  took  the  rain  as  it  came.  She  seemed  to  say, 
"  Well,  my  child,  if  you  can't  get  away,  mother  will 
stay  here  with  you."  That  is  true  sympathy  ;  suffering 
with  those  who  suffer.  A  little  girl  came  from  school 
one  day  and  said,  "Mamma,  Ada  was  thereto-day;  she 
has  lost  her  mother,  and  she  sat  in  the  desk  with  me 
and  put  her  face  in  her  book  and  cried  all  day."  "  What 
did  you  do,  my  daughter  ? "  "I  just  put  my  face  in 
my  book  aud  I  cried  too."  Sympathy  !  Let  us  do 
like  the  bird,  stand  by  our  fellow-men  in  their  sorrows 
and  it  will  help  them  bear  their  burdens.  It  is  what 
Jesus  does  for  us.  Sympathy  is  not  feeling  only,  it  is 
getting  down  with  our  brother  under  his  burden  and 
helping  him  bear  it.  "Kejoice  with  them  that  do  re- 
joice aud  weep  with  them  that  weep."  "  Bear  ye  one 
another's  burdens  and  so  fulfil  the  law  of  Christ." 

One  more  lesson  from  the  birds.  A  lady  sat  at  her 
window  a  bright,  balmy  spring  morning.  The  sun  was 
out  without  a  cloud,  the  blooming  flowers  were  sending1 
forth  their  fragrance  to  perfume  and  bless  the  earth, 
and  the  birds  sang  their  songs  of  gladness  as  they  went 


32         PULPIT,  PEW  AND  PLATFORM. 

forth  to  their  daily  toil.  Soon  the  lady  saw  that  a  lit- 
tle worker  had  chosen  a  rose  bush  for  its  hmoo  and  was 
very  busy  bringing  in  sticks  and  hair  and  feathers  and 
other  material  to  make  its  house.  "  Ah,  you  pretty  lit- 
tle creature,"  said  the  lady,  "  you  are  building  too  low. 
Soon  the  destroyer  will  come  and  break  up  your  sweet 
home."  And  so  it  was.  The  days  passed  by,  the  nest 
was  finished,  and  then  there  were  eggs  in  the  nest,  and 
then  four  great  big  mouths  were  open  whenever  the  low 
chirp  of  the  mother  announced  that  she  had  something 
for  them  to  eat.  One  day  the  lady  sat  by  the  window 
sewing;  suddenly  she  heard  the  cry  of  the  birds,  in  the 
dei  pest  distress,  and  she  looked  out  to  see  what  was  the 
matter.  There  was  a  great  big  snake  that  had  crawled 
up  and  was  devouring  the  helpless  little  ones,  while  just 
above  them  the  poor  heart-broken  mother  fluttered 
about  in  the  wildest  distraction.  But  it  was  too  late ; 
her  children  were  gone,  and  her  home  was  left  desolate, 
a  sad  reminder  of  her  folly  in  building  so  near  the 
ground.  So  I  think  it  is  with  people  who  have  no 
higher  ambition  than  earthly  pleasure,  wealth  or  honors. 
They  build  too  low.  Their  heart's  home  is  in  easy 
reach  of  death  and  the  devil,  and  depend  upon  it  the 
destroyer  will  come,  soon  or  late.  Let  us  build  for 
God.  Let  us  lay  our  foundations  in  the  eternities,  and 
build  for  the  great  hereafter,  and  we  shall  then  be  above 
and  beyond  all  danger.  "Lay  up  for  yourselves  treas- 
ures in  heaven  where  neither  moth  nor  rust  corrupt  and 
where  thieves  cannot  break  through  nor  steal."     Build 


SHORT    AND    CRISP.  33 

on  the  Rock,  and  the  winds  and   rains  and  floods  of 
time  or  eternity  will  beat  upon  your  house  in  vain. 


I 


PERSONAL  WORK. 
"  Go  out  in  the  highways  and  hedjes  and  compd  them  to  come  in." 

F  you  will  read  the  history  of  Christian  work  you 
can't  help  seeing  the  importance  of  personal  effort 
in  religion.  Take,  for  instance,  the  eighth  of  Acts,  or 
fourth  or  first  of  John — what  a  good  time  they  had 
finding  people  for  Christ.  It  is  according  to  human 
nature.  If  you  want  to  bring  men  and  women  to 
believe  with  you  and  go  your  way  you  must  see  them 
face  to  face,  eye  to  eye.  You  must  bring  your  individ- 
uality to  bear  with  all  that  that  means  and  every  out- 
side help  in  reach.  Look  how  they  do  in  politics. 
They  just  button-hole  a  man  and  hold  on  to  him  till  he 
surrenders.  How  those  gentlemen  who  term  themselves 
commercial  agents,  commonly  called  drummers,  who  go 
to  and  fro  and  up  and  down  in  the  earth,  seeking  whom 
they  may  take  in,  how  they  go  for  them  one  at  a  time  ! 
It's  always  a  hand  to  hand  encounter  with  them.  It's 
the  same  way  in  the  army.  Men  who  shoot  at  random, 
generally  hit  it  and  nothing  else.  It  is  the  man  that  takes 
aim  at  another  man  and  fires  on  him  and  follows  him  up 
till  he  gets  him,  that  does  the  work.  During  the  war  I  was 
attending  Roanoke  College  at  Salem,  Va.  For  several 
days  it  was  reported  that  General  Averill,  in  command 
of  a  heavy  force  was  on  a  raid  through  Virginia  and 
3 


31         PULPIT,  PEW  AND  PLATFOUM. 

aiming  for  Salem  to  tap  the  Virginia  &  Tennessee 
Railroad  at  that  point  and  thus  cut  off  supplies  coming 
from  the  South  to  Lynchburg.  One  morning  the  cry 
was  heard,  "  The  Yankees  are  coming !  "  "  The  Yankees 
are  coming!  "  Looking  up  the  street  we  saw  them  rid- 
ing pell  inell  into  town,  horses'  hoofs  clattering,  sabres 
rattling,  men  shouting,  women  and  children  flying  to 
their  homes,  and  fear  and  confusion  falling  on  all. 
Many  of  us  young  fellows  took  to  our  heels  for  the 
woods  about  half  a  mile  away.  When  nearly  across 
the  field  I  heard  several  shrill,  mad,  hissing  sounds  in 
my  immediate  vicinity,  followed  by  sharp  reports  of 
fire-arms  ;  looking  back  I  saw  there  was  a  man  after 
me  on  horseback  and  he  seemed  to  be  shooting  at  me  at 
every  jump.  I  did  some  of  the  finest  running  for  a 
minute  or  two  from  there  to  the  fence  that  had  ever 
been  done  in  that  country,  I  am  very  certain.  I  just 
rolled  over  the  fence — didn't  stop  to  climb  nor  jump  it 
— and  then  dropped  into  a  ditch  and  lay  as  flat  on  the 
bottom  as  a  lizard  on  a  log.  Presently  I  heard  him 
say,  "  Come  out  of  there,  sir."  I  looked  up,  and  he  had 
a  great  big  army  six-shooter  levelled  at  me  and  the 
hammer  of  it  rearing  up  as  it"  it  was  saying,  "  Be  quick, 
or  you  are  gone."  "Come  out,"  the  fellow  said  ;  and 
the  end  of  the  pistol  looked  as  big  as  a  stove-pipe,  but 
there  was  only  one  thing  for  me  to  do.  "Yes,  sir,"  I 
said,  "  I  am  coming — don't  shoot,"  and  out  I  came  and 
went  on  with  him.  That's  personal  work.  The  man 
was  after  me  and  he  got  me.     Why  can  we  not  do  that 


SHORT    AND    CRISP.  35 

way  in  the  Lord's  array?  The  great  Captain  has  set 
us  the  example  and  bids  us  go  and  preach  the  Gospel  to 
every  creature.     Let  us  obey  orders. 

While  holding  a  meeting  in  the  city  of  Brooklyn,  some 
time  ago,  among  many  requests  for  prayer  was  one 
made  daily  by  the  wife  of  a  very  wealthy  gentleman 
who  occasionally  attended  the  meetings.  He  was  young 
and  worldly,  and  gave  little  hope  to  us  that  anything 
could  be  done  with  him.  He  would  listen  and  go  away» 
and  as  far  as  we  knew,  that  was  the  last  of  it.  One 
evening  the  pastor  with  whom  I  was  working  called  at 
his  residence  and  said  to  him,  "  Mr.  R.,  I  have  a  ques- 
tion for  you ;  it  is  this  :  '  What  will  it  profit  a  man  if 
he  should  gain  the  whole  world  and  lose  his  own  soul  ? ' 
I  will  call  to-morrow  evening  at  this  hour  and  get  your 
answer." 

The  gentleman  said,  "  Doctor,  you  need  not  come  ; 
when  I  want  you  I  will  send  for  you."  "  No,  sir," 
replied  our  persevering  friend,  "  I  shall  be  here  to-mor- 
row evening  for  your  answer,"  and  he  got  it,  and  he 
got  his  man,  too.  There  was  a  rustle  and  then  a  breath- 
less silence  in  the  meeting  when  that  man  stood  up  and 
gave  himself  publicly  to  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  I  tell 
you  that  is  the  way  to  do  it. 

I  was  assisting  this  same  pastor  in  a  meeting  in 
Eutaw  Place  Church,  Baltimore.  Every  night  one  of 
the  deacons  came  up  the  aisle  with  a  sixteen-year-old 
boy  on  his  back.  The  little  fellow  was  paralyzed.  It 
was  a  sight  for  the  angels  to  look  upon  when  that  dear 


36  PULPIT,    PEW  AND    PLATFORM. 

saint  came  "  bending  under  the  weight  of  a  precious 
soul  and  body.  He  would  place  him  in  the  corner  of  a 
front  pew,  and  then  get  off  where  he  could  watch  him. 

One  night  I  gave  the  invitation  for  all  who  accepted 
Christ,  and  who  was  willing  then  and  there  to  confess 
Him,  to  stand  up.  The  dear  boy  could  not  rise,  but 
he  raised  both  hands  instead.  I  wish  you  could  have 
seen  the  man  who  brought  him  there.  His  face  was 
radiant,  the  tears  streamed  down  his  cheeks.  There 
was  joy  in  his  heart,  joy  among  the  angels,  joy  in  our 
midst.  He  had  brought  the  little  paralytic  to  Jesus, 
and  the  blessing  filled  him  full,  and  there  was  so  much 
of  it,  that  it  ran  over  and  tilled  us  all.  Many  joys 
await  us  in  the  bright  beyond,  but  none  can  be  sweeter 
than  the  privilege  of  meeting  those  we  tried  to  save. 
Paul  said  they  were  his  joy  and  his  crown. 

During  the  war  they  often  had  men  enlisted  who 
knew  nothing  at  all  about  military  tactics.  Men  were 
scarce  and  the  officers  had  to  take  them  as  they 
found  them.  One  day,  when  a  regiment  was  going 
into  a  fight,  one  of  those  recruits  young  and  green  went 
marching  into  the  battle.  He  saw  the  enemy  ahead  and 
went  for  them.  In  the  smoke  of  the  battle  he  did  not 
see  his  comrades  when  they  fell  back,  but  pressing  for- 
ward caught  a  man  in  the  collar  and  led  him  back  to 
where  his  regiment  had  again  formed.  He  was  much 
surprised  when  he  found  that  he  was  the  only  one  who 
had  captured  a  prisoner.  u  Why,  boys,"  said  he,  "  if 
you  had  kept  on  every  one  of  you  could  have  got  a  fel- 


SHORT    AND   CRISP.  37 

low."  Another  soldier  came  into  camp  one  day  with 
seven  prisoners.  His  name  was  Dick  Jacobs.  One  of 
the  boys  said,  "Dick,  how  in  the  world  did  you  capture 
all  of  these  men?"  "I  surrounded  them,"  he  replied. 
Christian  soldier,  go  into  battle,  surround  the  wan- 
derer and  capture  him  for  the  Lord.  It  does  not  so 
much  require  tactics  and  drill  as  courage  and  consecra- 
tion. 

CHILD-FAITH. 

A  GENTLEMAN  in  Georgia  whose  little  girl  de- 
sired to  join  the  church  told  her  that  she  was  too 
young.  "  Papa,"  she  said  as  she  climbed  up  into  his 
arms,  "  am  I  too  young  to  love  you  ? "  "  No,"  he 
replied,  "  and  you  are  not  too  young  to  love  Jesus ;  go 
on,  my  darling,  and  may  God  bless  you."  "  Suffer  the 
little  children  to  come  unto  me,  and  forbid  them  not." 

A  little  boy  asked  the  leader  of  a  prayer-meeting  to 
pray  that  his  little  sister  might  read  the  Bible.  When 
his  request  was  answered  the  little  fellow  left  the  church. 
Next  day  when  asked  why  he  did  so,  he  replied  that  he 
wanted  to  run  home  and  see  his  sister  reading  the  Bible 
for  the  first  time. 

In  one  of  the  London  hospitals  a  boy  was  brought 
in  who  had  been  run  over  by  a  wagon  and  badly 
crushed.  The  doctor  examined  him  and  said  he  couldn't 
live  but  a  few  hours.  Another  boy  who  was  sick  on  a 
bed  close  by  waited  until  the  nurse  and  doctor  went 
away  and  crept  over  to  the  bedside  of  the  dying  child 


r,8  PULPIT,    PEW   AND    1'1,\  1  I  (.KM. 

and  asked  him  what  was  his  name.  "Bobby,"  he  said. 
"Bobby,  do  you  know  that  you  are  going  to  die?  and 
let  me  tell  you,  Bobby,  I  have  been  to  a  mission  school 
where  a  good  lady  told  me  that  when  little  boys  died 
there  is  a  good  man  named  Jesus  who  conies  out  of 
heaven  and  takes  them  to  a  good  sweet  home,  and  all 
we  have  to  do  is  just  let  him  take  us.  If  you  will  ask 
for  him  he  will  come."  The  wounded  child  was  sink- 
ing fast  and  said,  "  I  am  so  tired  and  sleepy,  I  am 
afraid  I  won't  be  awake  when  he  comes."  "  Well,  you 
just  hold  up  your  hand  and  he  will  see  it."  The  little 
fellow  held  up  his  hand,  but  it  soon  fell  upon  his  bosom, 
he  was  so  weak.  "  Never  mind,  Bobby,  I  will  just  take 
my  pillow  and  prop  your  hand  up,  and  that  will  do. 
Jesus  will  see  it."  Pie  took  his  own  pillow  and  placed 
it  under  the  arm  of  the  poor  suffering  boy  and  retired 
to  his  couch.  Next  morning  when  the  nurses  arrived 
there  lay  the  lifeless  body,  the  hand  resting  on  the  pil- 
low, but  Jesus  had  come  and  taken  little  Bobby  home. 

BACKSLIDERS. 

SOME  time  ago,  I  was  traveling  on  the  Virginia 
Midland  Railroad.  Between  Charlottesville  and 
Orange,  I  saw  an  engine  down  under  a  bridge,  on  its 
back,  in  the  mud.  A  few  days  before,  that,  this  engine, 
sweeping  around  a  curve,  had  jumped  the  track  and 
rushed  to  ruin  in  a  few  minutes,  doing  great  damage  to 
property,  if  not  to  life.     The  men  were  hard  at  work 


SHORT   AND   CRISP.  39 

trying  to  get  it  back  to  its  place,  and  for  this  purpose 
had  laid  a  track  from  the  main  line  down  to  the 
wreck.  I  thought  as  I  saw  it,  "  How  many  Christians, 
in  turning  some  curve  in  life,  have  jumped  the  track 
and  gone  down  in  the  mud,  hurting  everything  and 
everybody  as  they  went,  doing  damage  not  only  to  them- 
selves and  those  connected  with  them,  but  to  the  great 
cause  of  our  Master  !  "  And  should  not  our  Churches 
do  the  same  thing  that  the  railroad  company  did,  and 
rescue  the  fallen  wanderer?  It  makes  my  heart  sick  to 
hear  brethren  say  with  boastftd  glee,  that  they  have  had 
a  revival  in  their  church,  by  turning  out  thirty  or  forty 
members.  It  simply  means  that  they  have  turned  their 
backs  on  thirty  or  forty  souls,  and  left  them  to  perish  in 
their  sins.  Of  course,  there  are  exceptions,  but  it  seems 
to  me  they  should  not  be  forsaken  until  our  most  ear- 
nest efforts  have  proved  unavailing.  "  Brethren,  if  a 
man  be  overtaken  in  a  fault,  ye  which  are  spiritual 
restore  such  an  one  in  the  spirit  of  meekness,  consider- 
ing thyself,  lest  thou  also  be  tempted." 

GOOD  WORKS. 

GOOD  works  are  like  the  hand  of  a  clock.  They  do 
not  carry  on  the  good  work  of  grace  on  the  inside, 
but  they  let  the  world  know  that  the  work  is  going  on, 
and  the  world  is  benefited  and  blessed.  The  hands  of 
the  clock  tell  us  the  time  of  day,  and  if  the  hands  are 
wrong  the  machinery  is  wrong,  generally  speaking.     If 


40  PULPIT,    PEW  AND    PLATFORM. 

the  wheels  run  correctly  and  the  hands  are  set  accurately 
to  the  standard,  all  will  be  well  and  the  time-piece  may 
be  relied  on.  So  if  the  heart  is  right  and  our  works 
accord  with  God's  word,  our  life  will  be  a  blessing. 
Some  good  people  are  like  crazy  clocks.  They  have 
zeal  but  it  is  not  seasoned  with  good  judgment.  Those 
of  us  who  know  them  well,  understand  them,  but  stran- 
gers do  not.  They  are  like  the  old  man's  clock  whose 
owner  said,  that  when  the  hands  pointed  to  two  and  it 
struck  twelve,  he  knew  it  was  half-past  seven.  The 
hands  alone  are  of  no  service,  except  to  be  used  on  a 
dial  for  an  advertisement.  And  good  works  avail  but 
little  unless  the  machinery  of  salvation  is  back  of  them, 
set  in  motion  by  the  hands  of  the  great  Inventor.  A 
man  with  good  works  is  a  mere  moralist.  He  will  do  for 
an  advertisement,  that  a  future  search  will  reveal  some- 
thing better,  but  is  not  fit  for  the  Kingdom  of  Heaven. 
Those  who  have  traveled  out  of  Washington  on  the 
Southern  railroads,  must  have  had  their  attention  called 
to  the  fleet  of  dredgers  at  work  redeeming  the  Potomac 
flats.  Little  by  little  dams  have  been  built,  the  water 
drawn  off,  the  reclaimed  land  protected,  until  now,  acres 
of  the  bed  of  the  river  which  was  only  mud  and  water, 
have  been  converted  into  fertile  soil.  It  has  been  a  won- 
derful work  and  greatly  improves  the  health  and  wealth 
of  that  portion  of  the  city.  Why  can't  we  do  such 
work  for  Jesus  Christ?  Iniquity  has  flooded  the  earth) 
and  its  tidal  wave  has  swept  over  soil  that  might  be 
reclaimed  and   made  to  blossom  as  the  rose.     Little  bv 


SHORT    AND   CRISP.  41 

little,  and  with  persistent  effort,  our  own  land  and  for- 
eign countries  will,  ere  long,  rise  above  the  dark  waters 
and  laugh  in  the  sunlight  of  God's  love  as  they  yield 
bounteous  harvests  in  humble  appreciation  of  their 
deliverance  from  bondage. 

TRUSTING  CHRIST. 

"  Believe  in  (he  Lord  Jesus  Christ  and  thou  shalt  be  saved." 

YTOT  long  ago,  I  was  sent  for,  to  see  a  dying  woman. 
■L*  As  I  entered  the  room  I  noticed  a  large  fine-look- 
ing man  sitting  beside  the  bed,  and  was  informed  that 
he  was  the  husband  of  the  dying  woman  and  was  a  ship- 
captain.  He  told  his  wife  that  the  minister  was  present 
and  she  began  at  once  to  beseech  me  to  tell  her  how  she 
might  be  saved.  Never  in  my  life  did  I  feel  more 
sensibly  the  weight  of  responsibility  that  was  upon  me. 
Something  must  be  done  and  done  at  once.  "  What 
can  I  do  ?  "  she  cried.  "  Oh  !  I  am  miserable,  tell  me, 
what  must  I  do  ?  "  I  told  her  to  believe  in  Jesus  and 
He  would  save  her.  "  Yes,"  she  said,  "  I  know  that, 
but  tell  me  how  to  believe."  I  said  to  her,  "  Suppose 
this  house  was  on  fire  and  your  husband  would  tell  you 
to  trust  him  to  take  you  out;  could  you  trust  him?" 
"  Yes,  sir,  I  could."  "  Well,  that  is  what  Jesus  is  doing. 
He  has  come  into  this  world  to  save  sinners,  and  lie 
says  if  Ave  will  trust  Him  He  will  take  us  to  heaven." 
She  looked  up  with  a  smile  of  joy  on  her  face.  "  Is 
that  it  ?  "  she  said.     "  Is  that  what  it  means  ?  "    "  That 


12  PULPIT,    PEW   AND    PLATFORM. 

is  it,"  I  replied.  " Only  tru>t  Him  just  as  you  would 
your  husband.  He  will  do  what  He  promises."  "I 
*an  trust  Him,  I  do  trust  Him.  Oli !  I  am  so  happy." 
1  left  her  in  that  happy  frame  of  mind  alter  praying 
with  her.  When  I  went  baek  the  crape  was  on  the 
door — she  was  gone.  They  told  me  she  remained 
in  the  same  happy  state  and  rejoieing.  I  baptized  her 
husband  soon  after,  and  now  he  has  gone  to  be  with  her 
in  heaven. 

On  another  occasion  I  was  called  to  see  a  gentleman 
who  was  on  his  death-bed.  He  told  me  he  had  been  a 
(  lnistian  for  twenty  years  but  was  very  unhappy.  The 
cause  of  his  unhappiness  was  that  he  had  not  kept  his 
promises  to  God.  He  said  he  had  no  peace  and  was 
miserable.  I  reminded  him  that  he  was  not  trusting  his 
promises  to  God  to  save  him,  but  God's  promise  to  him. 
He  looked  into  the  face  of  his  anxious  wife  who  was 
standing  by  and  said,  "  Why,  that's  it ;  why  didn't  I  think 
of  that  before?  "  How  important  it  is  to  keep  our  eyes 
oft'  of  ourselves  and  on  our  Saviour  ! 

While  holding  a  meeting  with  Dr.  Cuthbcrt,  in  Wash- 
ington City,  one  night  a  little  boy  came  forward.  I  asked 
him  if  he  believed  that  Jesus  would  save  him.  "I  know 
He  will,"  said  the  little  fellow.  "I low  do  you  know 
it?  "said  I.  "Because  He  said  so,"  he  replied.  The 
faith  of  that  little  child  is  worth  a  world  full  of  such 
faith  as  some  theologians  have.  I  attended  a  Congress 
some  time  ago  and  listened  to  learned  men  as  they  en- 
deavored to  throw  light  on  some  of  the  great  theologi- 


SHORT    AND   CKISP.  43 

cal  questions  of  the  day.  The  conclusion  that  they 
reached  may  be  very  well  expressed  in  the  language  of 
the  old  colored  man  :  "  It  mout,  and  then  again,  it  mout 
not."  The  child's  faith  is  the  best,  after  all :  "  He  said 
He  would,  and  He  will."  Let  us  take  the  Lord  at  His 
word  and  "  Receive  the  kingdom  of  heaven  as  a  little 
child." 

WHICH  SIDE? 

"Art  thou  for  us,  or  for  our  adversaries  ?" 
"  He  that  is  not  with  vie  is  against  me." 

YOUR  life  with  all  its  influence  is  either  for  of 
against  Christianity.  Stop  a  minute,  and  think 
which  it  is.  Of  course,  there  are  degrees ;  you  may 
not  be  a  bad  man  or  woman,  at  least  not  as  bad  as  you 
might  be,  and  yet  you  are  helping  to  pull  the  scales 
down  one  way  or  the  other.  "  By  their  fruits  ye  shall 
know  them."  A  tree  may  have  a  good  deal  of  bad 
fruit  on  it,  or  a  very  little  good,  or  it  may  be  only  a 
cumberer  of  the  ground,  with  no  fruit  at  all  ;  but  it  is 
impossible  for  a  human  life  which  comes  in  contact 
with  any  other  human  life  to  be  fruitless.  We  judge 
one  another  by  our  acts,  and  that  is  the  way  the  Lord 
judges  us.  Now,  on  which  side  the  line  does  the  influ- 
ence of  your  life  fall  ?  Are  you  known  as  a  Believer 
or  an  Unbeliever?  A  church  member  or  a  worldling? 
As  a  hearer  and  doer  of  the  word,  or  a  hearer  only? 
As  the  world  reads  you  in  your  every-day  life,  what 
conclusion   does  it  come  to?     On  which    side  does  it 


44  PULPIT,    PEW  AND    PLATFORM. 

place  you  ?  The  world  is  quite  accurate  in  its  judg- 
ment. Let  me  give  you  two  pictures. — I  was  riding  iu 
the  train  not  long  ago,  and  in  the  seat  before  me  a  man 
and  a  youth  sat  together.  They  soon  fell  into  conver- 
sation, and  became  quite  familiar.  I  paid  no  attention 
specially  to  what  they  were  saying,  but  was  surprised 
to  see  the  man  take  a  bottle  from  his  pocket.  He  held 
it  up,  looked  at  it,  and  offering  it  to  the  boy,  said  : 
"  Do  you  ever  indulge  ?  "  Indulge  what  ?  Indulge  an 
appetite  that  would  be  his  ruin  ;  Indulge  a  habit  that 
would  destroy  his  hopes  of  success  in  this  life  or  happi- 
ness in  the  life  to  come;  Indulge  a  taste  that  would 
soon  become  a  craving  that  would  not  cease  till  it 
dragged  him  to  destruction.  I  felt  like  getting  up  and 
putting  ray  arms  around  the  little  fellow,  and  begging 
the  man  for  Jesus'  sake,  for  the  child's  mother's  sake,  to 
stop  tempting  that  boy.  But  he  didn't  give  me  time; 
he  looked  up  into  the  face  of  his  tempter  and  said  : 
"No,  I  thank  you,  sir,  I  never  drink."  Which  side 
was  that  man  on  ? 

Here  is  the  other  picture.  At  one  of  our  large 
notels  a  gentleman  was  standing  in  the  office  when  a 
little  boy  came  in  selling  matches.  It  was  against  the 
rules  of  the  house,  but  the  weather  was  cold,  and  the 
case  was  desperate,  so  the  child  forced  his  way  in,  at  the 
risk  of  being  rudely  thrown  out.  He  asked  several  to 
buy ;  they  were  sitting  around  the  good  warm  fire, 
after  a  nice  breakfa>t,  and  felt  comfortable  and  happy 
as  they  read   the   morning   papers.     He  came  at  last  to 


SHORT    AND    CRISP.  45 

the  gentleman  who  was  standing  near  the  others,  and 
appealed  to  him.  "  Mister,  please  buy  some  matches, 
my  mother  is  poor,  and  \ve  haven't  a  thing  to  cat,  and 
my  father  is  dead."  The  man  looked  at  him  a  mo- 
ment, and  handed  him  a  quarter  of  a  dollar.  "  Here, 
change  that,  and  I'll  buy  some."  The  boy  hadn't  the 
change,  but  ran  out  to  get  it.  As  he  went  out  the 
clerk  said:  "You  will  never  see  that  money  again. 
That  little  humbug  has  got  that  much  on  the  clear." 
"  Well,  I  can't  help  it,  I  would  rather  give  to  an  un- 
worthy object  once  in  a  while  than  turn  a  worthy  one 
away,  and  you  cannot  always  tell.''  Sure  enough  the 
boy  didn't  come  back.  Next  morning  a  little  fellow 
came  in,  and  asked  if  there  was  a  man  there  that  gave 
a  quarter  to  a  little  boy.  ' '  Yes,"  said  the  clerk,  "  but  you 
are  not  the  boy.  You  get  out  of  here.  I  suppose  you 
want  to  play  the  same  game  on  him,  do  you  ?  "  "  Xo, 
sir,  I'm  his  little  brother.  A  wagou  ran  over  him 
while  he  was  crossing  the  street  to  get  the  gentleman's 
change,  and  the  doctor  says  he's  going  to  die,  and  he 
cried  all  night  to  mother  to  let  me  bring  the  change 
back,  because  he  said  the  gentleman  would  think  he 
stole  it.  Please,  sir,  send  for  him;  I  want  to  tell  him 
about  it,  'cause  my  brother  said  I  must  see  him  myself, 
and  come  back  and  tell  him.'' 

While  the  little  fellow  Mas  talking  the  man  had 
come  in,  and  was  listening.  He  put  on  his  overcoat 
and  hat,  and  taking  the  little  fellow  by  the  hand,  led 
him  out  of  the  hotel,  and  told   him  to  show  him  where 


46  PULPIT,    PEW  AND    PLATFORM. 

his  mother  lived.  Down  the  streets  and  lanes  and  al- 
1<  \s  they  walked,  till  they  came  to  the  poverty-stricken 
home.  As  he  entered,  he  saw  the  poor  little  wounded 
boy  in  his  pallet  of  rags.  The  child  recognized  him  at 
once,  and  began  to  explain  how  it  had  happened.  "In- 
deed, sir,  I  didn't  intend  to  steal  your  money.  I  was 
trying  to  get  across  the  street,  and  a  wagon  struck  me, 
and  ran  over  me,  and  I  couldn't  help  it ;  indeed,  I 
couldn't,  sir." 

"  Never  mind,  my  child,  never  mind,"  said  the  good 
man,  "  don't  talk  now,  just  try  to  be  quiet."  Turning  to 
the  mother  he  gave  her  a  handful  of  money,  and  said  : 
"  Here,  you  take  this,  and  go  and  buy  whatever  is  nec- 
essary for  this  child's  comfort,  and  get  what  you  need 
for  yourself.  Don't  be  uneasy,  I'll  stay  with  him." 
And  he  sat  down,  and  told  the  little  fellow  about  Jesus, 
and  how  lie  would  come  soon  and  take  him  out  of  all 
his  suffering,  and  take  him  home  with  Him,  where  he 
would  be  well  and  happy.  All  night  long  he  sat  be- 
side the  dying  boy,  and  when  the  morning  dawned  aud 
the  first  streaks  of  light  came  through  the  windows  of 
that  humble  home,  the  little  sufferer  looked  up  into  the 
face  of  his  benefactor,  and  said:  "Good-bye,  sir;  good- 
bye. You  have  been  very  kind  to  me.  I  will  wait  for 
you  and  think  of  you  in  heaven.  And  I  will  tell  Je- 
sus how  good  you  were  to  me,  and  He  will  love  you 
more,  I  know.  I  am  getting  very  tired,  and  the  light 
is  going  out.  It  is  dark.  Can  you  see  me,  sir?  Put 
your  hand  on   my  forehead.     Mother,  won't  you  kiss 


HHOBT    AND   CKISP.  47 

me?''  He  fell  asleep,  and  the  tears  came  down  the 
cheeks  of  the  good  strong  man,  and  fell  upon  the  face 
of  the  poor  tired,  dead  child.  Which  side  was  that 
man  on  ?  Surely  Jesus  and  the  angels  were  there,  and 
again  was  fulfilled  that  which  is  written:  "Inasmuch 
as  ye  did  it  unto  one  of  these,  the  least  of  my  disci- 
ples, ye  did  it  unto  me." 

SAVED  FROM  DRINK. 

I  SUPPOSE  every  one  will  agree  with  me  that  the 
greatest  curse  of  the  world,  to-day,  is  the  drink  habit. 
If  I  were  asked  to  mention  the  most  prolific  source  of 
sorrow  that  I  have  met  in  all  my  experience  and  obser- 
vation, without  a  moment's  hesitation  I  should  answer 
intemperance.  Not  only  do  wives,  mothers  and  chil- 
dren suffer  from  this  great  evil,  but  the  men  themselves, 
who  are  the  victims  of  intemperance,  are  passing  through 
a  hell  on  earth.  It  is  the  most  deceiving  enemy  of 
mankind.  Some  years  ago,  I  belonged  to  a  surveving 
party  in  Mexico;  one  day  I  heard  the  natives,  who 
were  cutting  a  line  for  us  through  the  thick  brush,  cry 
cut  as  if  very  much  alarmed,  and  looking  in  that  direc- 
tion I  found  them  running  for  life;  they  had  seen  a 
large  anaconda  in  a.  tree  over  their  heads.  It  is  the 
habit  of  this  serpent  to  get  into  a  tree,  leap  upon  his 
victim,  wind  himself  around  it;  and,  as  its  strength 
gives  away,  increase  his  own  power  until  he  crushes  the 
life  out  of  his  captive.     I  think  it  is  a  good  illustration 


48  PULPIT,    PEW  AND    PLATFORM. 

of  what  whiskey  does  for  men.  It  continually  tightens 
its  hold  as  we  relax  in  will  power,  and,  at  last,  utterly 
destroys  the  happiness,  hopes  and  life  itself  of  those 
who  fall  in  its  grasp. 

I  propose  here  to  give  what  I  believe  is  the  only  sure 
remedy,  and  I  give  it  after  years  of  experience,  after 
years  of  thoughtful  examination  and  with  the  endorse- 
ment of  many  others.  Resolutions,  will  power,  oaths 
and  any  and  everything  that  a  man  can  do,  amount  to 
something,  perhaps,  but  very  little.  No  man  is  safe 
who  undertakes  to  break  the  habit  by  his  own  exertions. 
The  only  remedy  is  Jesus  Christ.  Call  the  habit  a  dis- 
ease, uncontrollable  appetite — call  it  what  you  will, 
there  is  but  one  who  cau  stay  the  hand  of  the  fell  de- 
stroyer. 

I  propose  to  give  several  authentic  cases,  which  had 
gone  (as  far  as  human  judgment  could  decide)  beyond 
the  reach  of  mortal  arm.  It  is  painful  to  me  to  men- 
tion my  own  case.  It  is  well  known  to  my  friends 
everywhere,  and  best  known  to  those  who  were  closest 
to  me,  that  I  had  indulged  in  the  habit  of  intemperance, 
until,  at  the  age  of  twenty-five  all  who  knew  me  seemed 
to  have  abandoned  every  hope  of  my  recovery.  No- 
thing ever  done  by  a  devoted  father  and  an  affectionate 
sister  and  four  as  true  and  noble  brothers  as  a  man  ever 
had,  with  friends  ready  to  sacrifice  anything  in  my 
behalf — nothing,  I  say,  ever  done  by  any  one  on 
earth,  was  neglected  in  my  case,  it  seems  to  me,  and  all 
of  no  avail  whatever.     Sixteen  years  have  passed  away 


SHORT   AND   CRISP.  49 

since  the  day  of  my  deliverance,  and,  without  a  shadow 
of  a  doubt  on  my  mind,  I  make  the  staterueut  that 
Jesus  Christ,  and  He  alone,  has  saved  me  from  death  in 
the  morning  of  my  life,  and  the  power  of  the  curse  that 
blighted  my  every  prospect.  I  only  know  that  I  went 
to  him,  and  as  far  as  I  knew  how,  tried  to  put  myself 
in  his  hands  for  salvation.  I  prayed  to  him  and 
asked  for  strength  in  the  last  fight  I  ever  expected  to 
make  against  this,  my  greatest  enemy.  Who  can  blame 
me  for  going  everywhere  and  telling  others  of  this 
mighty  Saviour.  Now,  let  me  mention  several  other 
cases  just  as  strong  :  I  have  a  friend  who  lives  in  the 
South,  and  once  had  his  home  in  the  Valley  of  Vir- 
ginia. He  had  a  little  family  around  him,  but  was  a 
burden,  instead  of  a  blessing  to  them,  every  day. 
Twice  he  tried  to  kill  himself.  A  man  of  brilliant  in- 
tellect, good  family,  and  blessed  with  opportunities  for 
making  of  himself  anything  he  wanted  to  be,  yet  ut- 
terly worthless  on  account  of  this  habit.  He  went  to 
Baltimore  seeking  a  situation,  with  a  few  dollars  in  his 
pocket  to  pay  his  way ;  he  felt  that  if  he  could  just  get 
one  drink  and  take  no  more,  he  would  be  in  a  good 
plight  to  make  application  for  a  position.  That  one 
drink  did  the  work  for  him.  There  are  men  who  can 
take  one  drink  and  follow  it  up  with  dozens  of  others, 
and  you  would  never  know  that  they  had  taken  any  at 
all.  They  are  regular  old  soaks,  and  are  never  called 
drunkards,  when,  in  truth,  they  are  the  worst  drunk- 
ards in  the  community.  Then  there  are  other  men  who 
4 


50  PULPIT,    PEW  AND    PLATFORM. 

are  so  constituted  that  if  they  take  one  drink  there  is 
no  stopping-place  for  them  this  side  of  the  gutter.  My 
friend  was  one  of  those.  After  lie  had  been  on  a  spree 
for  several  days,  he  was  standing  early  one  morning  on 
the  corner  of  a  street,  in  rags  and  in  despair.  As  he 
stood  there,  a  gentleman  came  by,  stopped,  looked  him 
ij  the  face,  and  said:  "You  seem  to  be  very  sad  this 
morning;  what  is  the  matter?"  "  Well,"  he  said,  "I 
think  I  have  a  right  to  be  sad.  I  have  a  wife  and  little 
ones  at  home  in  Virginia.  I  am  here  without  money, 
without  friends,  and  (to  use  his  own  eloquent  language 
as  I  heard  him  speak  it  to  my  congregation)  no  bed  but 
the  pavement  and  no  pillow  but  the  curbstone."  "My 
friend,"  the  stranger  said  to  him,  "Jesus  Christ  died 
for  you."  "Oh  !  no  he  didn't,"  he  said  ;  "  no  he  didn't. 
Jesus  never  died  for  me."  "I  tell  you  he  did,"  said 
the  stranger,  "and  there  is  hope  for  you  to-day. 
He  can  take  away  the  appetite  for  drink,  he  can 
make  you  a  new  man  and  send  you  back  to  your 
family  a  blessing  to  them  all  your  days."  After  the 
man  went  away  my  friend  walked  down  a  little  alley 
and  crawled  under  an  old  wagon,  where  he  had  slept 
the  night  before,  and  burying  his  face  in  his  hands, 
with  that  cry  of  despair  which  only  comes  up  from  the 
broken  heart  of  a  poor  sinner,  he  said:  "Lord  Jesus, 
if  you  did  die  for  me,  help  me  now!"  Something 
seemed  to  come  into  his  heart  and  tell  him  there  was 
hope  for  him.  He  said  to  me  that  he  came  out  from 
under  that  wagon  with  new  feelings,  new  desires,  new 


SHORT    AND    CRISP.  61 

resolutions,  and  all  of  them  founded  upon  Jesus  Christ, 
bis  only  hope.  He  made  his  way  back  to  Virginia, 
and  instead  of  telling  his  wife  and  his  little  babies  that 
he  had  a  position  in  Baltimore,  he  told  them  that  he 
had  Christ  as  his  Saviour.  There  was  joy  in  that  home. 
Many  years  have  passed,  and  my  friend  is  to-day  the 
head  of  one  of  the  largest  business  houses  in  the.  South, 
an  earnest  and  devoted  Christian  ;  preaches  the  Gospel 
sometimes ;  and  tells  with  joy,  anywhere  and  to  any 
one  that  asks  him,  the  reason  for  the  hope  that  is  in 
him,  and  how  Jesus  saved  him  from  a  drunkard's  grave. 
Let  me  give  you  one  more.  Seven  years  ago  I  made 
an  address  in  the  city  of  Richmond  for  the  W.  C.  T.  U. 
at  the  Seventh  Street  Christian  Church.  The  next  day 
I  received  a  note  from  a  man,  who  told  me  that  he  was 
at  the  meeting  the  night  before  and  earnestly  desired  to 
be  saved  from  drink.  I  was  informed  that  he  was  the 
most  hopeless  case  in  the  city  of  Richmond.  A  short 
time  afterwards  I  was  holding  a  meeting  at  the  Leigh 
Street  Church,  at  which  Rev.  John  Pollard,  D.D.,  Mas 
then  pastor.  This  same  man  made  his  appearance  there, 
professed  his  faith  in  Christ  and  applied  for  membership 
in  the  Church.  I  cannot  describe  the  condition  of  my 
friend  at  that  time.  Perhaps  it  would  give  you  some 
idea,  when  I  tell  you  that  his  own  wife  said  to  me  that 
she  did  not  believe  he  could  have  lived  three  weeks 
longer.  There  was  absolutely  no  hope  whatever  on  the 
part  of  his  friends  ;  no,  not  even  in  the  grace  of  God  it- 
self, it  seemed  to  me.     He  was  a  member  of  a  prominent 


52  PULPIT,    PEW  AND    PLATFOP.M. 

and  wealthy  family  in  Richmond,  but  had  spent  all  and 
was  now  without  help  from  any  one.  Of  course  there 
was  in  the  minds  of  all  a  very  serious  doubt  as  to  whether 
there  was  any  hope  of  his  recovery.  I  forbear  entering 
the  sacred  circle  of  his  private  affairs  to  say  any  more 
of  his  condition  at  that  time.  In  the  spring  of  1889, 
five  or  six  years  after  the  time  of  which  I  have  been 
speaking,  I  was  again  in  Richmond,  holding  meetings. 
One  day  I  received  a  note  in  substance  as  follows  : 

"Dear  Bro.  Wharton  : — While  you  are  here  I  want 
you  to  come  and  take  a  meal  with  me,  that  you  may  see 
what  God  has  wrought,  through  your  instrumentality, 
in  a  drunkard's  home."  Of  course,  I  went.  As  I 
walked  down  the  street,  looking  for  the  number,  I  came 
to  a  pretty  little  white  cottage,  a  bird  in  a  cage  in  the 
window  was  singing  gaily.  I  rang  the  bell  and  a  little 
girl  came.  I  said  to  her:  "I  am  Mr.  Wharton." 
"Oh !  yes,"  she  replied,  "  we  all  know  you,  Mr.  Whar- 
ton ;  papa  and  mamma  have  been  telling  us  about  you." 
I  walked  into  a  nice  and  well-furnished  parlor  ;  soon 
the  wife  came  in  ;  by  and  by,  several  children  from 
school  and  last  the  husband  and  father.  (Now  holding 
a  prominent  position  in  a  business  house  in  Richmond.) 
He  turned  to  his  little  daughter  and  said:  "Go  there 
to  the  piano  and  play  something  for  Mr.  Wharton."  I 
have  heard  fine  music  in  my  life.  I  have  listened  to 
hundreds  of  trained  singers  and  to  the  performances  of 
some  of  the  best  orchestras  in  the  land,  but  I  do  not 
think  I  ever  heard  any  music  that  sounded  as  sweetly  to 


SHORT    AND   CRISP.  53 

rae  as  the  playing  of  that  little  child.  We  went  into  the 
dining-room  soon  and  sat  talking  and  eating.  I  have 
been  into  many  homes  elegant  and  hospitable  ;  I  have 
sat  at  the  board  with  as  genial  people  as  most  any  man, 
I  reckon,  but  I  have  never  taken  a  meal  that  was  so 
enjoyed  by  me,  I  think,  as  this — peace  and  plenty  every- 
where. As  I  was  leaving  he  took  me  by  the  hand  and 
said  :  "  Now,  my  brother,  wherever  you  go  I  want  you 
to  tell  the  people  what  God  has  done  for  a  drunkard  and 
his  home."  Whenever  I  go  to  Richmond,  now,  I  find 
him  and  his  wife  and  his  children  in  my  congregation, 
and  it  is  understood  between  us  that  a  day  belongs  to 
them  whenever  I  make  a  visit  to  that  city.  I  need  not 
tell  you  that  it  is  always  one  of  my  sweetest  days,  how- 
ever blessed  all  the  others  may  be. 

It  is  needless  to  multiply  cases.  These  are  sufficient. 
I  tell  you,  my  friends,  there  is  salvation  for  the  worst 
of  cases.  I  do  not  believe  that  any  man  ou  earth  has 
gone  or  can  go  beyond  the  reach  of  Jesus  Christ. 

A  TALK  TO  CHILDREN. 

I  AM  going  to  speak  to  you  of  five  new  things.  All  of 
us  love  something  new.  A  child  loves  a  new  toy, 
a  man  loves  a  new  suit  of  clothes,  a  lady  delights  in  a 
new  bonnet,  and  so  it  is  a  pleasure  to  us  even  to  think 
of  new  things.  These  that  I  am  going  to  speak  to  you 
about  are  both  new  and  old.  They  come  out  of  God's 
old  book  and  will  be  a  blessing  for  you  to  remember 
them. 


64  PULPIT,    PEW  AND   PLATFORM. 

The  first  is  a  new  heart.  God  says  he  will  give  us  a 
new  heart.  This  does  not  mean  that  he  will  take  these 
hearts  out  and  put  new  hearts  in,  but  he  will  change 
the  heart  so  that  it  will  be  new  in  its  feelings,  its  de- 
sires, its  ambitions.  Those  who  have  a  new  heart  love 
what  they  used  to  hate  and  hate  what  they  used  to  love. 
A  little  girl  who  joined  the  church  was  asked  how  she 
felt  about  sin.  She  replied:  "  I  used  to  run  after  sin  ; 
now  I  feel  like  I  want  to  run  away  from  it."  And 
then  we  love  Christian  people  and  want  to  be  with 
them.  They  asked  her  how  she  felt  towards  Christians. 
She  said:  "  I  feel  like  they  are  kin  to  me."  So  you  see 
that  God  gives  us  a  new  heart.  It  is  the  heart  that 
loves  him  and  loves  his  people  and  loves  to  be  good  and 
to  do  good.  Sometimes  the  Lord  gives  a  new  heart  to 
very  young  people.  He  will  give  it  to  all  of  you  if 
you  ask  him.  I  knew  a  gentleman  who  was  a  good 
Christian  man.  When  he  was  a  little  boy  he  heard  the 
preacher  say  that  the  Lord  would  make  a  little  boy  a 
Christian.  He  says  he  went  home  and  knelt  down  and 
said  :  "O  Lord,  make  me  a  Christian."  The  Lord  did 
make  him  a  Christian  and  one  of  the  best  I  ever  saw. 

The  next  new  thing  is  a  new  creature.  "  If  any  man 
be  in  Christ  he  is  a  new  creature."  And  this  is  just  as 
true  of  children  as  it  is  of  grown  people.  If  you  believe 
in  Christ  as  your  Saviour  and  have  the  new  heart  that 
I  have  just  been  talking  about,  you  are  a  new  creature. 
You  are  new  in  your  hopes,  new  in  your  thoughts,  new 
in    your   words    and    new  in  your  acts.     There  was  a 


SHORT   AND   CRISP.  55 

sailor  who  was  converted  once,  and  he  was  going  along 
the  street  and  some  of  his  friends  said:  "Here  comes 
old  John."  He  replied:  "No,  it  ain't;  it  is  new  John, 
with  old  John's  clothes  on.  I  have  been  converted, 
and  I  am  a  new  creature  in  Christ  Jesus." 

A  New  Name.  God  says  that  when  we  have  a  new 
heart  and  become  new  creatures  he  gives  us  a  new  name. 
I  do  not  know  what  name  he  calls  the  Christians  by  in 
heaven.  Jesus  says  our  names  are  written  in  the  Book 
of  Life.  Probably  there  may  be  some  name  that  he  has 
given  you  that  you  will  be  kuowu  by  in  heaven.  I  have 
heard  of  a  little  girl  who  was  found  on  the  street  in  a 
basket;  she  didn't  have  any  father  or  mother  to  care 
for  her,  and  good  people  took  her  to  the  hospital,  where 
she  was  raised  up  until  she  became  a  good-sized  girl. 
They  named  her  Mary  Lost.  When  she  grew  old 
enough  to  become  a  Christian,  and  that  was  as  soon  as 
she  was  old  enough  to  know  right  from  wrong,  she 
gave  her  heart  to  Jesus,  and  he  gave  her  a  new  heart 
and  made  her  a  new  creature.  Then  she  wanted  a  new 
name.  She  went  to  the  superintendent  of  the  Home  and 
said:  "Please  doti't  call  me  Mary  Lost  any  more." 
"What  shall  we  call  you?"  said  the  lady  who  had  the 
Home  in  charge.  "Call  me  Mary  Found,"  she  said ; 
"I  used  to  be  Mary  Lost,  but  I  am  not  lost  any  longer. 
Jesus  has  found  me,  and  I  want  you  to  call  me  Mary 
Found."  A  new  name  he  will  give  to  all  who  love 
and  serve  him. 

A  Ni-iv  Song.  "  He  has  put  a  new  song  in  my  mouth, 


56  PULPIT,    PEW  AND    PLATFORM. 

even  praise  to  our  God.''  I  love  lo  hear  children  sing. 
Their  voices  are  sweeter  than  the  birds',  and  when  they 
sing  to  the  praise  of  God,  it  must  be  sweet  to  the  angels 
and  to  Jesus.  I  knew  a  little  girl  in  Luray,  Va.,  who 
died  when  she  was  live  years  old.  Just  before  she  died 
she  said:  "Mamma,  sing  something."  "  What  must  I 
sing,  Virgie,"  her  mother  said.  "Sing  'Soon  be  at 
home  over  there.'"  Wicked  people  sing  wicked  songs, 
but  God's  children  love  to  sing  songs  of  praise  to  their 
Father  in  heaven.  The  birds  sing  when  they  get  up  in 
the  morning,  and  I  sometimes  think  that  the  little 
things  are  so  glad  and  happy  that  while  they  sing  for 
joy  their  little  songs  are  like  anthems  of  praise  to  our 
Father's  ears.  Sing,  children,  to  the  praise  of  God,  for 
this  is  the  new  song  that  he  loves  to  hear. 

Now,  the  last  new  thing  is  the  new  City.  Sometimes 
this  new  city  is  spoken  of  as  the  place  where  we  shall 
all  dwell — the  Eternal  City,  whose  builder  and  maker 
is  God.  Do  you  know  what  that  city  is?  It  is  heaven. 
If  we  have  a  new  heart  and  are  new  creatures  ;  if  we 
have  a  new  name  and  sing  the  new  song,  we  shall  all  go 
to  the  new  city  where  Jesus  is,  and  where  some  of  our 
mothers  and  fathers  have  gone,  and  little  brothers  and 
sisters.  If  you  will  pray  to  Jesus  he  will  bless  you 
and  take  you  home  to  heaven,  the  new  city,  when  you 
die.  Not  loner  airo  a  little  girl  got  on  a  railroad  train 
and  took  her  Beat  with  the  passengers.  As  the  train 
moved  oif  the  conductor  came  up  and  asked  her  for  her 
ticket.     She  said:    "I  have  no  ticket."     ''Where  are 


SHORT    AND   CRISP.  57 

you  going?"  he  asked.  "1  am  going  to  heaven.  Does 
not  this  train  go  to  heaven?  Mamma  has  gone  there, 
and  she  told  me  that  I  should  soon  come  and  be  with 
her."  The  conductor  said:  "No,  my  child,  this  train 
just  runs  along  on  the  earth.  It  does  not  go  to  heaven." 
The  little  thing  commenced  to  cry,  and  said  :  "I  am  so 
sorry.  I  thought  I  would  see  mamma  to-day."  The 
conductor  was  a  wicked  man,  but  he  thought  he  would 
try  to  comfort  the  little  girl,  and  said  to  her:  "Don't 
cry ;  I  have  a  little  girl  in  heaven,  just  your  size." 
Quickly  the  little  thing  looked  up,  smiling  through  her 
tears,  and  said  :  "What  is  her  name?"  "Her  name  is 
Mamie,"  he  answered.  "Oh  !"  she  said,  "when  I  get 
to  heaven  I  will  see  Mamie,  and  I  will  tell  her  that  I 
saw  her  papa,  and  she  will  ask  me  when  you  are  coming 
to  heaven.  What  must  I  tell  her?"  He  knew  very 
well  that  he  was  going  in  the  opposite  direction  from 
heaven ;  so  he  tried  to  avoid  answering  the  little  girl. 
"Never  mind,"  he  said,  "it  does  not  matter  about  that. 
I  will  take  you  to  the  next  station  and  ask  the  con- 
ductor of  the  train  that  comes  back  to  bring  you  home. 
Good-bye!"  But  she  caught  hold  of  his  coat,  and 
said:  "Yes,  it  does  matter;  she  will  ask  if  her  papa 
is  coming  to  heaven,  and  you  must  tell  me  what  to  say 
to  her.  Indeed  you  must."  The  man  looked  at  her  a 
moment  and  tried  still  to  put  her  off,  but  she  would  not 
hear  him.  "Are  you  going  to  heaven?"  she  said. 
"Please  tell  me,  for  your  little  Mamie  will  be  very 
anxious."     The  tears  stole  out  of  his  eyes  and  along 


58  PULPIT,    PEW  A.Mi    PLATFORM. 

down  his  cheeks,  as  he  thought  of  his  sweet  little  cne 
in  heaven,  and  looked  into  the  honest,  upturned  face 
of  the  little  one  before  him.  Stooping  down,  he  put  his 
arm  around  her  and  kissed  her,  and  said  :  "Yes,  bless 
your  dear  little  heart,  if  you  see  ray  Mamie  before  I  do, 
tell  her  that  from  this  hour  her  papa  is  on  his  way  to 
heaven."  God  help  us  all  to  put  our  trust  in  Jons 
and  journey  along  toward  the  new  city,  where  we  shall 
all  meet  to  part  no  more,  forever. 

A  VISIT   FROM  JESUS. 

IF  you  will  look  in  the  11th  chapter  of  John  and  the 
28th    verse,   you    will    find    these    words :     "  The 
Master  is  come  and  calleth  for  thee." 

In  reading  this  chapter  we  are  impressed  with  the 
naturalness  of  it.  Two  sisters  are  sitting  beside  the 
bed  of  their  sick  brother.  Day  by  day  he  grows  worse 
and  worse.  The  doctors  had  done  all  they  could,  and 
the  man  was  no  better.  It  was  Lazarus  who  was  sick,- 
and  Mary  and  Martha,  the  devoted  sisters,  who  sat  at  his 
bedside.  I  can  imagine  the  tender-hearted  Mary  say- 
ing :  "If  Jesus  were  here  He  could  cure  our  brother." 
"  We  can  have  Him  here,"  Martha  would  say,  and  in 
her  own  business-like  way.  she  at  once  makes  arrange- 
ments to  send  for  Him.  The  messenger  goes  on  a  long 
journey  and  finds  the  Saviour  and  tells  Him  that  the 
one  He  loves  is  sick.  He  did  not  come  for  two  days 
after  He  receives  the  message.     How  ofteu  that  is  the 


SHORT    AND    CRISP.  59 

case  with  us.  We  call  for  Him,  but  He  seems  to  tarry, 
and  the  more  we  need  Him  the  longer  the  days  of  his 
absence  seem.  Sometimes,  when  one  of  your  loved  ones 
has  been  sick,  and  you  have  sent  off  for  the  doctor,  in 
a  great  hurry,  it  looked  as  if  the  doctor  would  never 
come.  You  would  run  to  the  door,  look  up  and  down 
the  street,  only  to  go  back  with  a  sinking  heart.  So  it 
was  with  Martha  and  Mary.  On  the  third  or  fourth 
day  after  they  sent  for  Him,  somehow  or  other  Martha 
hears  that  He  has  come  and  she  goes  out  to  meet  Him, 
when  the  conversation  occurred  that  I  read  to  yon  in 
this  chapter.  He  asks  for  Mary,  and  Martha  hurries 
back  to  the  house,  where  the  neighbors  are  sitting  around 
Mary  trying  to  comfort  her;  she  whispers  to  Mary, 
"  The  Master  is  come  and  calleth  for  thee."  The  others 
in  the  room  did  not  hear  it,  for,  when  Mary  followed 
Martha  out,  they  said,  "  She  is  gone  to  the  grave  to 
weep  there."  But  she  had  not  gone  to  the  grave  ;  she 
had  gone  to  meet  Jesus. 

The  first  thought  that  presents  itself  to  my  mind 
here,  is  that  Jesus  Christ  is  Master.  He  is  the  Devil's 
Master.  It  does  my  heart  good  to  read  in  the  Scrip- 
ture of  those  cases  where  poor,  devil-possessed  human 
beings  were  brought  to  Jesus,  and  He  would  say  to  the 
devils :  "I  command  you  to  come  out  of  them  !"  They 
would  skulk  away  like  sheep-killing  dogs.  Whenever 
you  are  sorely  tempted,  remember  that  Jesus  is  the 
Master  of  the  devil,  and  can  step  in  between  you  and 
him  at  any  time  and  order  him  off.     It  is  a  glorious 


60  PULPIT,    PEW  AM)    PLATFORM. 

thought  to  us  Christian  workers.  It  helps  us  in  our 
meetings.  It  strengthens  us  in  our  efforts  to  live  the 
right  kind  of  life.  No  matter  what  may  come;  no 
matter  how  severe  the  temptation  may  be,  Jesus  is  the 
Master  of  the  devil. 

He  is  the  Master  of  death,  also.  When  He  came 
into  this  world  he  conquered  death,  and  leads  him  cap- 
tive at  His  will.  All  of  us  are  afraid  of  death,  and  we 
have  a  right  to  be.  It  has  made  sad  havoc  with  us. 
You  look  up  in  the  corner  where  mother  used  to  sit,  and 
the  chair  is  vacant.  You  hunt  about  the  house  and 
you  come  across  a  little  shoe,  but  the  precious  foot  that 
wore  it  walks  no  more  across  your  floor,  and  the  sweet 
little  mouth,  whose  prattle  was  music  to  your  soul,  is 
hushed  and  still  to-day.  You  wear  scars  on  your  heart 
that  you  will  carry  to  the  latest  hour  of  your  life. 
What  did  all  this?  Death!  Xo  wonder  that  we 
should  be  afraid  of  it ;  and  yet,  death  can  only  come 
when  Jesus  permits  it.  We  arc  immortal  until  our 
work  is  done. 

He  is  our  Master.  If  He  is  not,  the  devil  is.  He 
sits  enthroned  in  the  hearts  of  all  true  disciples,  di- 
recting our  thoughts,  controlling  our  feelings,  shedding 
abroad  the  light  of  our  life,  and  day  by  day  sustaining 
and  strengthening  us  for  the  battle.  Those  of  us  who 
have  served  Him  most  an'  mosi  anxious  to  continue  in 
His  service,  for  I  lis  yoke  is  easy  and  His  burden  is 
light.  You  who  have  served  the  other  master,  if  you 
would  know  what  true  joy  is,  take  Jesus  as  your  Saviour, 


SHORT    AND    CRIST.  fi  1 

obey  Him  as  your  Master,  and  a  life  of  usefulness  here 
and  happiness  hereafter  will  be  yours. 

"  The  Master  is  come."  That  is  the  best  news  this 
world  ever  heard.  When  the  shepherds  were  watching 
their  flocks  that  night  in  Palestine  and  heard  such 
music  as  had  never  greeted  their  ears  before,  they  looked 
up  to  see  who  had  brought  such  sweet  melodies  and 
found  that  the  angels  were  gathering  around  them  and 
telling  them  the  blessed  news,  that  the  Master  had  come. 
And  so  we  can  say  the  Master  has  come  here  in  unusual 
power  in  these  meetings.  You  have  seen  the  tears  of 
the  penitent ;  you  have  witnessed  the  confession  of  Christ 
by  happy  converts ;  you  have  listened  to  the  songs  of 
praise  that  have  gone  up  from  hundreds  of  devoted 
hearts.  What  means  it  ?  The  Master  is  come.  Oh  ! 
blessed  hour,  when  Jesus  walks  among  his  people  and 
gives  to  them  the  joys  of  His  presence. 

"  The  Master  is  come  and  calleth."  He  is  always 
calling.  He  calls  by  every  providence.  When  you 
were  siek  and  felt  perhaps  you  might  never  get  well,  He 
Mas  calling  for  you.  When  you  looked  into  the  cold 
pale  face  of  your  own  loved  dead,  He  Mas  calling.  You 
have  never  heard  a  sermon  in  your  life,  but  it  Mas  a 
call  of  the  Master  ;  and  to-day  the  call  is  repeated. 
And  notice  how  personal  is  this  call.  He  calleth  for 
thee.  If,  M'hile  I  am  talking,  you  feel  in  your  heart 
that  this  means  you,  take  it  home,  apply  it  to  yourself 
aud  do  the  Masters  will. 

"The  Master  is  come  and  calleth  for  thee."     What 


62  PULPIT,    PEW  AND    PLATFORM. 

docs  He  want?  He  wanted  Mary  that  He  might  com- 
fort her.  He  knew  that  her  poor  heart  was  breaking, 
and  He  wanted  to  relieve  her  of  the  anguish  that  afflic- 
tion had  brought.  Are  you  afflicted?  Is  your  poor 
heart  burdened  ?  While  I  am  talking,  to-day,  do  you 
feel  that,  like  Mary,  grief  has  smitten  your  soul?  Is 
there  some  trouble,  to-day,  that  you  feel  that  you  can- 
uot  tell  anybody  about  ?     He  calleth  for  thee. 

"  Here  bring  your  wounded  hearts, 
Here  tell  your  anguish  ; 
Earth  has  no  sorrow  that 
Heaven  cannot  heal." 

He  is  calling,  too,  for  you,  Christian  people.  He  wants 
you  to  go  to  work.  "  Why  stand  ye  here  all  day,  idle." 
What  have  you  done  ?  What  are  you  doing  for  Jesus? 
Are  you  thinking  about  your  own  enjoyment,  day  by 
day,  busy  after  the  things  of  this  world,  diving  into  all 
sorts  of  pleasures  ?  Stop  a  minute.  The  Master  calls. 
He  wants  you  to  go  out  and  work  for  him.  Yonder 
wayward  wanderer  is  thy  brother,  thy  sister;  go  and 
win  them  back  to  Christ.  There  is  much  for  every  one 
to  do,  and  the  Master  is  urgent  in  his  demand. 

Hark  !  the  voice  of  Jesus  crying, — 

"  Who  will  go  and  work  to-day  ? 
Fields  are  white  and  harvest  waiting, 

Who  will  bear  the  sheaves  away?" 
Loud  and  long  the  Master  calleth, 

Rich  reward  lie  offers  thee  ; 
Who  will  answer,  gladly  saying: 
"  Here  ami;  O  Lord  send  me." 


SHORT    AND   CRISP.  6** 

And  then  He  is  calling  for  yon,  who  are  not  Christians, 
but  are  thinking  o'f  giving  your  hearts  to  Him.  Dear 
friends,  come  a  little  closer.  Come  and  touch  the  hem 
of  His  garment ;  take  Him  by  the  hand,  kneel  at  His 
feet ;  look  up  into  His  face.  He  has  come  to  save  you  ; 
can  you  not  trust  Him.  Hear  the  voice  and  obey;  you 
will  find  ways  open  to  you  of  which  you  have  never 
dreamed,  and  a  life  worth  living  will  be  your  daily 
reward.  Not  long  since  a  man  stood  up  in  one  of  my 
congregations,  and  said  :  "  The  Lord  took  me  out  of  the 
saloon  and  put  me  into  the  church.  I  never  knew  what 
life  was  until  I  began  to  live  as  a  Christian."  And  you, 
who  care  nothing  for  your  souls,  He  calls  for  you. 
Every  day  you  are  going  farther  away  from  Him. 
Turn  and  listen  to  His  call.  Think  what  will  be  the 
outcome  of  all  this  life  of  disobedience  that  you  are 
living.  It  will  not  be  long  until  the  evening  shades 
shall  fall  across  our  path.  Some  night  you  will  be 
lying  on  your  bed  and  your  loved  ones  will  gather 
around  you ;  they  will  softly  take  your  hand  and  in  a 
low  faltering  voice  will  say  :  "  Do  you  know  that  you  are 
very,  very  ill  ?"  Their  forms  will  fade  out  of  your  sight, 
your  grasp  upon  the  world  will  be  broken  and  as  your 
strength  fails  and  your  heart  is  nearer  its  final  beat, 
you  will  hear  a  voice  :  "  The  Master  is  come  and  calleth 
for  thee."  The  Lord  help  us  to  heed  His  call  now,  and 
we  shall  be  able  to  hear  it  then  with  "joy  unspeakable 
and  full  of  glory." 


64  PULPIT,    PEW  AND    PLATFORM. 


RESCUING  THE  PERISHING. 

4<  The  Son  of  man  has  come  (o  seek  and  to  save  the  lost." 
"As  the  Father  hath  sent  me,  so  send  I  you." 

THERE  is  something  in  the  heart  that  moves  us  to 
reach  out  a  hand  for  the  helpless,  and  to  try  to 
rescue  those  who  are  perishing.  This  is  the  blessed 
errand  on  which  Jesus  Christ  came,  and  for  which  he 
sends  us  forth  to  the  world.  Go  ye  into  all  the  world 
and  tell  the  good  news  to  every  creature,  every  individ- 
ual. They  are  perishing,  and  you  must  try  to  save 
them. 

Walking  along  High  Street,  in  Edinboro',  with  some 
friends,  and  stopping  now  and  then  to  look  at  places  of 
interest  in  this  crowded  thoroughfare,  which  was  once 
the  home  of  the  aristocracy,  but  now  the  resort  of  the 
poor  and  needy,  and  often  the  criminal  classes,  we 
noticed  the  bust  in  marble  of  a  boy,  and  over  and 
around  it  this  inscription:  "Heave  away,  chaps,  I'm 
not  dead  yet."  It  had  a  touching  history.  About  sixty 
persons  had  lived  in  the  old  house  which  stood  in  the 
place  now  occupied  by  this  new  building.  The  old  trap 
fell  one  day  and  caught  and  killed  nearly  all  the  occu- 
pants.  When  the  men  had  been  at  work  in  the  old 
ruins  for  two  days  clearing  away  the  debris  and  taking 
out  the  dead  bodies,  they  heard  a  voice  from  underneath 
their  feet  saying:  "Heave  away,  chaps,  I'm  not  dead 
yet."  They  worked  away  with  might  and  main  and 
soon  pulled  the  little  fellow  out  and  saved  him.     There 


SHORT   AND   CRISP.  65 

was  joy  in  that  city  as  the  glad  news  went  from  home 
to  home,  and  especially  the  home  and  heart  of  his  own 
loved  ones.  The  men  who  saved  him  wept  with  delight 
when  they  realized  what  they  had  done.  Down  under 
the  ruins  of  sin,  among  the  debris  of  iniquity  and 
wretchedness,  many  a  sftul  cries  out  to  the  toiler  for 
Christ :  "  Heave  away,  chaps,  I'm  not  dead  yet."  Let 
us  work  with  happy,  hopeful  hearts,  and  ere  long  we 
shall  rejoice  with  the  angels  of  God  over  new-born  souls 
in  the  Kingdom  of  Heaven. 

Sometimes,  in  trying  to  save,  we  save  our  own.  On 
the  first  Sunday  in  January  1  asked  my  members  who 
were  willing  to  try  to  save  a  soul  that  year  to  stand  up. 
I  think  they  all  rose,  for  they  have  a  mind  to  work  in 
our  church,  and  are  happiest  when  hardest  at  it.  Not 
long  after,  when  baptizing,  as  I  would  take  them  into 
the  water  one  by  one,  a  mother  led  her  daughter  up  to 
me  and  said  :  "Brother  Wharton,  I  promised  you  a  soul 
for  Christ,  and  here  she  is,  my  own  precious  child."  A 
merchant  of  Rochester,  New  York,  who  had  been  off 
traveling  for  his  house,  was  returning,  and  as  he  walked 
along  the  street  near  the  bank  of  the  Genesee  River  he 
heard  a  cry  close  by  and  saw  a  commotion  among  some 
little  boys  at  the  river  side.  He  soon  found  that  one  of 
their  mates  was  drowning.  Without  a  moment's  hesi- 
tation he  dropped  his  grip-sack  and  rushed  into  the 
water.  He  seized  the  drowning  boy  and  brought  him 
to  the  bank  and  laid  him  down  and  looked  into  his 
face  for  the  first  time.  He  turned  as  white  as  a  sheet 
5 


66  PULPIT,    PEW  AND    PLATFORM. 

as  the  little  fellow  opened  his  eyes  and  looked  up  into 
his  face.  "  My  God  \"  he  said,  "  this  is  my  own  child." 
What  gratitude,  what  joy  must  have  filled  that  father's 
heart.  Pie  had  rescued  his  own  dear  boy.  So  it  is. 
We  never  know  how  well  we  work,  nor  ever  will,  until 
we  reach  the  other  side. 

The  Page  valley  of  Virginia  lies  between  the  Blue 
Ridge  on  one  side  and  the  Massanutron  on  the  other. 
Right  down  through  the  middle  flows  the  bright  and 
beautiful  river,  named  by  the  Indians  Shenandoah,  the 
"daughter  of  the  stars."  When  it  rains  the  waters 
rush  down  the  mountain  sides  into  the  river,  until  it 
overflows  its  banks  and  sweeps  down  the  valley,  carry- 
ing everything  before  it.  You  can  hear  the  sound  of 
the  roaring  waters  a  long  way  off,  and  the  people  gather 
on  the  banks  to  watch  the  fearful  tide.  I  think  it  was 
in  November,  1874,  when  one  of  those  terrible  floods 
came  and  deluged  the  pretty  little  valley.  Early  in  the 
morning  a  crowd  had  gathered  along  the  banks  near 
Front  Royal,  and  were  watching  the  angry  waters  as 
they  swept  on,  carrying  fence-rails,  logs  of  wood,  shocks 
of  corn,  stacks  of  hay  and  wrecks  of  bridges  and  houses. 
Looking  away  out  into  the  river  a  little  tree  was  noticed 
swaying  to  and  fro,  and  a  black  object  in  its  branches. 
"It  is  a  man  !  "  broke  from  a  score  of  mouths,  as  they 
looked  into  each  other's  faces  and  wondered  what  could 
be  done.  Certain  death  seemed  to  be  the  lot  of  any 
man  who  would  dare  to  trust  himself  upon  that  wild 
waste  of  waters.     But  something  must  be  done.     Yet 


SHORT   AND   CRISP.  07 

who  would  dare  undertake  the  desperate  task.  A  man's 
life  was  in  peril,  his  strength  fast  failing;  no  time  nnist 
be  lost.  A  young  man  whom  I  know  well  was  stand- 
ing there  looking  quietly  on,  but  with  mind  and  heart 
busily  planning  the  rescue  of  the  poor  sufferer.  "  Bring 
me  a  boat  and  I  will  try  to  get  him,"  he  said.  As  soon 
as  possible  a  boat  was  hauled  through  the  fields  and  up 
the  river  some  distance,  the  people  following  on.  The 
young  man  was  at  that  time  one  of  the  civil  engineers 
locating  the  Shenandoah  Valley  Railroad.  He  was  in- 
telligent and  brave.  When  they  had  gone  far  enough, 
according  to  his  judgment,  he  had  the  boat  put  into  the 
water,  stepped  in  and  shot  out  into  the  stream.  A 
shudder  ran  through  every  mortal  frame  upon  those 
banks  when  the  little  boat  commenced  its  battle  with 
the  mad,  muddy  waters.  It  required  a  cool  head,  a 
stout  heart  and  a  sturdy  arm.  It  is  down  stream,  but 
he  must  steer  for  the -tree,  the  rubbish  must  be  watched 
and  avoided,  and  the  boat  carefully  guarded  to  prevent 
upsetting.  On  and  on  the  noble  fellow  went,  the  peo- 
ple running  along  the  banks  in  almost  breathless  anxiety, 
and  praying  God  for  help.  On  and  on  he  goes,  until 
he  is  near  the  tree,  and  as  the  boat  shoves  by  he  drops 
his  oars  and  throws  his  arm  around  the  body  of  the  tree; 
quick  as  a  flash  the  boat  wheels  around  with  her  head 
up  stream  and  all  is  well.  The  poor,  stiff  refugee  begins 
to  climb  down,  and  in  an  instant  they  are  out  in  the 
stream,  and  the  strong  young  arms  are  pulling  for  the 
shore.     The  flush  of  victory  is  ou  his  cheek  and  the 


G8  PULPIT,    PEW  AND    PLATFORM. 

light  of  heaven  in  his  eye  as  he  steps  out  of  the  boat 
and  lifts  the  tired,  grateful  man  whose  life  lie  had  saved 
and  risked  his  own  to  do  it.  The  glad  throng  who  had 
watched  him  with  such  affectionate  interest,  gathered 
around  him  and  greeted  him  with  a  shout  that  fairly 
rent  the  skies.  And  to  this  day  the  people  of  that 
country  speak  with  rapture  of  the  noble  deed.  Xeed  I 
make  the  application  ?  Out  in  the  dark  and  troubled 
waters  of  siu  there  are  thousands  perishing.  We  may 
rescue  them  if  we  will,  and  save  not  their  bodies  only, 
but  their  souls,  and  the  angels  of  heaven  will  rejoice, 
and  the  heart  of  our  Saviour  be  made  glad  over  every 
one  we  bring  to  him. 

"Rescue  the  perishing, 
Care  for  the  dying, 
Snatch  them  in  pity 

From  sin  and  t lie  grave; 
"Weep  o'er  the  erring  one, 

Lift  up  the  fallen  ; 
Tell  them  of  Jesus, 
The  mighty  to  pave." 

Passing  through  Philadelphia,  I  bought  a  morning 
paper  and  found  the  following:  On  the  day  before, 
while  people  were  out  walking,  (a  pleasant  Sunday  after- 
noon) on  the  banks  of  the  Schuylkill  River  and  across 
the  bridges,  they  were  startled  by  a  cry  of  alarm. 
Looking  in  the  direction  from  which  the  sound  came 
they  saw  that  two  boys  were  drowning.  All  stood  still, 
and  knew  not  what  to  do.  Some  clutched  the  hand  of 
the  child  they  were  leading,  and  thanked   God  it  was 


SHORT    AND   CRISP.  69 

not  their  boy  who  was  perishing.  Others  ran  to  the 
waters'  edge,  but  feared  to  venture  in ;  strong  men 
seemed  weak,  and  helpless,  and  bewildered.  "  Clear 
the  way/'  a  shrill  voice  cries,  and  the  people  stand  aside 
as  a  lad  without  hat,  coat  or  shoes,  his  hair  flying  in  the 
wind,  his  eyes  fixed  on  the  drowning  boys,  rushes 
through  the  crowd  and  leaps  into  the  river.  In  an  in- 
stant he  holds  one  boy  with  his  left  hand,  while  he 
takes  the  other  by  the  jacket  with  his  teeth  and  makes 
for  the  bank.  Almost  lifeless  he  fell  at  the  feet  of  the 
excited  throng,  but  he  had  saved  the  boys.  That  night 
the  citizens  had  a  meeting.  They  gave  clothes  and 
money  to  the  noble  youth,  for  he  was  a  poor  boy,  and 
the  poor  do  not  have  money  and  but  few  friends.  The 
mothers  kissed  him  and  every  body  praised  him.  He 
had  done  a  brave  and  noble  deed.  Let  us  go  and  do 
likewise  for  Jesus'  sake. 

"  There  are  lonely  hearts  to  cherish, 
There  are  weary  souls  who  perish 
While  the  days  are  going  by." 


III. 

SERMONS. 


RECOGNITION  IN  HEAVEN. 

SERMON  DELIVERED   BY  MR.  WHARTON  IN   THE   SEVENTH   BAP- 
TIST CHURCH,  BALTIMORE,  DEC.  II,  1889. 

OUR  text  to-night  is  from  1st  Corinthians,  13th 
chapter,  12th  verse:  "For  now  ice  see  through  a 
glass,  darkly ;  but  then  face  to  face;  now  I  know  in 
part ;  but  then  shall  I  know  even  as  also  I  am  known." 

We  are  all  interested  in  this  subject,  and  for  two  rea- 
sons :  In  the  first  place,  every  one  of  us  expects  to  go  to 
Heaven;  I  do  not  believe  there  is  a  man,  woman  or 
child  in  the  house,  listening  to  me  now,  who  does  not 
expect  at  the  last  to  go  to  Heaven,  and  I  am  glad  of  it; 
the  only  thing,  my  friends,  is  to  see  to  it  that  yon  are 
in  the  right  road  to  Heaven.  You  remember  when 
Jesus  said  to  his  disciples,  "  I  go  to  prepare  a  place  for 
you,  and  whither  I  go  ye  know,  mid  the  way  ye  know," 
and  Thomas  saith  unto  him,  "  Lord,  we  know  not 
whither  thou  goest,  and  how  can  we  know  the  way?" 
Jesus  said,  "  I  am  the  way."  So  that  if  you  and  I  are 
in  Christ  to-night,  if  we  have  accepted  him  as  our 
Saviour,  if  we  are  trusting  in  him  and  trying  to  follow 
70 


SERMONS.  71 

him,  there  is  no  doubt  about  it,  we  are  in  the  way  to 
Heaven,  and  we  have  the  best  of  reasons  for  supposing 
that  we  will  get  to  Heaven,  and  we  ought  to  want  to 
know  something  about  how  it  is. 

The  other  reason  why  we  are  all  interested  in  this 
subject,  is  this :  There  is  no  one  here  to-night  but  has 
lost  a  loved  one,  and  sometimes,  as  we  think  about  the 
dear  ones  gone,  we  wonder  if  we  shall  know  them  ?  I 
often  wonder  in  my  heart  if  I  shall  know  mv  mother, 
aud  how  she  will  look,  and  thinking  upon  these  things 
I  have  examined  the  subject  in  the  Scriptures  more 
carefully  and  with  more  intense  interest,  it  seems  to  me, 
than  I  have  any  other  subject  in  the  Bible.  It  is  ray 
deliberate  conviction  that  we  shall  know  each  other  in 
Heaven,  and  I  am  here  to-night  to  tell  you  the  reasons 
that  brought  me  to  that  conclusion.  I  believe  that  in 
heaven  we  shall  recognize  each  other,  and  I  want  you  to 
listen  to  the  reasons  I  have  to  give  and  see  if  you  do 
not  think  so  too. 

Let  me  call  your  attention,  first  of  all,  to  a  fact  which 
I  hope  you  will  keep  in  your  mind  as  I  go  along  talk- 
ing :  Heaven  is  a  place.  Now,  we  are  in  the  habit  of 
thinking  of  Heaven  as  a  floating  something — a  baseless 
fabric  that  has  no  body  or  foundation.  Remember,  my 
friends,  Heaven  is  a  place  just  as  much  as  this  earth  is 
a  place,  and  more  so,  for  Heaven  is  eternal,  and  this 
world  shall  be  destroyed.  #You  know  Heaven  is  spoken 
of  as  the  Eternal  City  whose  maker  and  builder  is  God. 
It  is  spoken  of  sometimes  as  a  better  couutry,  and  we 


72  PULPIT,    PEW  AND    PLATFORM. 

are  pilgrims  passing  through  a  strange  land  on  our  way 
to  that  better  country.  We  sing,  sometimes,  "  I  am  but 
a  stranger  here,  Heaven  is  my  home."  Jesus  said  to 
them,  "  I  go  to  prepare  a  place  for  you."  Bear  it  in 
mind,  then,  that  Heaven  is  a  place;  and  furthermore, 
remember  that 

The  inhabitants  of  Heaven  are  'people.  I  know  there 
are  angels  there,  and  blessed  spirits,  perhaps,  of  whom  we 
have  no  account  in  God's  Word,  but  we  are  sure  that 
among  the  inhabitants  of  Heaven  are  people. 

John,  when  he  had  the  vision  of  which  I  have  been 
reading  to-night,  said  he  saw  a  great  number  clothed  in 
white,  and  an  elder  said  to  him,  "  Who  are  these, 
John  ? "  He  seemed  afraid  to  reply.  Presently  he 
said  to  him,  "Sir,  thou  knowest."  "  Thou  knowest,"  as 
if  he  would  not  venture  to  say  ;  and  then  the  elder  an- 
swered, "  These  are  they  who  came  up  out  of  great  trib- 
ulation, and  have  washed  their  robes,  and  made  them 
white  in  the  blood  of  the  Lamb.''  Who  are  they? 
They  are  the  redeemed.  And  so  among  the  inhabitants 
of  Heaven  are  the  people,  the  redeemed,  and  many  of 
our  dear  ones  who  have  passed  through  the  trials  and 
tribulations  of  this  world,  and  have  heart!  the  voice  of 
the  Father  saying,  "  It  is  enough,  come  up  higher,"  and 
they  have  gone  to  be  with  him. 

Again,  let  us  bear  in  mind  These  people  have  bodies ; 
they  are  sown  a  natural  body — they  are  raised  a  spirit- 
ual body.  These  spiritual  bodies  are  not  such  as  we 
have   now,  trammelled   by  the  flesh  ;  they  are  not  bur- 


SERMONS.  73 

dened  by  fleshly  weight,  but,  as  some  old  preacher  has 
represented  it,  they  can  pass  hither  and  thither  like 
flashes  of  thought.  For  example,  my  mind  is  now  in 
San  Francisco,  California,  so  is  yours ;  now  it  is  up 
among  the  stars,  so  is  yours ;  now  it  is  in  New  York, 
so  is  yours ;  now  it  is  here,  so  is  yours.  Quick  as 
thought  flashes  our  spirits  will  travel  from  place  to 
place  at  the  direction  of  the  will.  You  know  Jesus 
passed  in  and  out  through  a  house,  and  in  an  instant 
was  caught  away.  After  the  crucifixion  Jesus  and  the 
saints  arose  from  the  grave  and  showed  their  bodies  to 
the  disciples.  So  we  know  these  people  have  bodies 
after  resurrection. 

Now  this  is  the  question :  Since  Heaven  is  a  place, 
and  Heaven's  inhabitants  are  people  and  have  bodies, 
Are  these  bodies  recognizable?  Shall  we  know  each 
other  in  these  spiritual  bodies  in  which  we  shall  dwell 
in  Heaven  ? 

Now,  first  of  all,  There  is  nothing  in  Scripture  against 
it.  I  cannot  find,  from  Genesis  to  Revelation,  anything 
against  it.  On  the  other  hand  we  are  encouraged  to  be- 
lieve it  is  so.  Don't  you  know  that  when  Jesus  was 
asked  by  a  disciple,  "  Suppose  a  woman  has  five  hus- 
bands, and  by  and  by  she  and  they  all  die,  whose  wife 
would  she  be  in  the  resurrection  ?  "  Jesus  might  have 
set  that  whole  question  at  rest  by  simply  saying,  "  Why, 
in  the  resurrection  you  won't  know  each  other,"  but  he 
did  not  ;  he  always  dealt  fairly  with  them.  He  said 
about  Heaven,  "  If  it  were  not  so  I  would  have  told 


7-4  PULPIT,  PEW  AND  PLATFORM. 

you,"  and  he  would  havo  said  then,  "You  will  not 
know  each  other  Id  the  resurrection,"  but  he  simply  said, 
"In  the  resurrection  the  relations  will  be  differenl  ;  you 

will  be  like  the  angels."  Don't  you  know  the  angel 
said  to  John,  "  I  am  thy  fellow-servant/'  So  in  the 
resurrection  Jesus  teaches  us  to  believe  the  relation  will 
be  different,  and  we  shall  recognize  each  other. 

The  only  argument  I  have  ever  seen  against  it — and 
it  is  no  argument,  but  rather  the  suggestion  of  a  dif- 
ficulty— is  this  :  A  dear  mother  here  to-night  will  say, 
"Brother  Wharton,  suppose  when  I  get  to  Heaven  I 
shall  find  my  sweet  child  absent,  how  could  I  be 
happy?  If  I  am  to  recognize  people  there,  and  find 
my  child  missing,  how  could  I  be  happy?"  The  only 
reply  I  can  make  to  that,  is  this:  God  does  not  an- 
swer that  question.  I  cannot  find  it  answered  any- 
where  in  the  Scripture.  I  can  only  say  this:  We 
shall  be  happy  in  Heaven.  I  say  furthermore,  Jesus 
Christ  is  far  better  than  any  of  us  has  ever  taken 
him  to  be,  good  as  we  believe  he  is,  and  nobody  can 
tell  what  transpires  in  that  last  minute  between  the 
dying  one  and  his  Saviour.  Who  shall  undertake  to 
say  that  your  loved  one  who  has  gone  out  of  the  world, 
and  fur  whom  you  have  but  the  slightest  hope,  in  the 
lasi  minute  caught  a  glimpse  of  his  Saviour  and  said, 
"  Lord,  remember  me  when  thou  comest  into  thy 
kingdom." 

Now  let  us  take  the  representations  of  Heaven  as  sus- 
taining this  view  that  we  shall  recognize  each   other. 


SERMONS.  75 

Heaven  is  represented  as  a  feast,  and  I  am  here  to-night, 
dear  friends,  to  invite  every  one  of  you  to  this  feast — 
the  feast  of  the  blessed  Lamb,  and  to  say  that  all  things 
are  ready,  come  every  one  and  partake  of  it ;  it  is  your 
blessed  privilege  ;  let  him  that  heareth  say,  come,  and 
whosoever  will  let  him  come.  Heaven  is  represented  as 
a  feast.  Now,  what  would  you  think  of  a  feast  held  in 
Baltimore  and  the  papers  came  out  aud  said  such  a  man 
had  a  feast  and  nobody  at  the  feast  knew  anybody  else  ? 
Would  not  that  be  a  very  strange  feast — everybody  a 
stranger?  You  might  account  for  it  here  by  saying  it 
was  a  masked  party,  but  there  would  not  be  any  mask- 
ing in  Heaven.  And  so  when  God  tells  us  Heaven  is 
a  feast,  I  understand  it  that  guests  will  know  each 
other. 

Heaven  is  also  represented  as  a  family.  The  whole 
family  of  God  on  earth  and  in  Heaven.  It  is  one  of 
the  sweetest  thoughts  that  in  Heaven  and  on  earth  God 
has  a  family,  some  who  have  passed  over  to  the  other 
side,  some  on  this  side.  If  your  spiritual  eyes  could  be 
opened  to-night  I  think  you  might  see  some  of  them 
looking  down  with  anxious  hearts,  hoping  that  their 
loved  ones  would  give  their  hearts  to  God  this  very 
hour.  The  whole  family — the  good  in  earth  and 
Heaven  ;  some  have  passed  over  and  some  are  passing 
over,  and  it  will  not  be  long  ere  you  and  I  shall  hear 
the  welcome  words:  "Child,  thy  Father  calls  come 
home."  Another  blessed  truth  is  that  new  children  are 
being  born  into  the  family  every  day — in  this  country, 


76  PULPIT,    PEW  AM)    PLATFORM. 

across  the  seas,  all  over  the  earth ;  and  did  you  ever 
think  that  aa  the  Gospel  spreads  and  laborers  increase, 
more  and  more  are  going  out  and  preaching  the  word, 
that  the  joy  in  Heaven  is  increased?  They  rejoice  over 
every  sinner  that  returns,  and  whenever  a  sinner  is  born 
into  the  Kingdom  joy  springs  up  in  the  better  land,  and 
the  glad  shouts  ring  throughout  the  skies. 

Now,  what  would  you  think  of  a  family  sitting 
around  the  family  circle  and  not  one  of  them  knowing 
any  other  of  the  family".'  Would  it  not  be  a  strange 
family?  Can  you  think  of  a  family  like  that?  I  can- 
not conceive  of  our  Father's  family  sitting  around  in 
Heaven  and  not  knowing  one  another ;  and  when  God 
represents  it  as  a  whole  family,  and  all  crossing  over, 
and  by  and  by  the  last  one  crossing  over  and  getting 
safely  in  Heaven,  I  believe  that  family  will  know  one 
another. 

Our  knowledge.  "Then  shall  I  know,  even  as  I  am 
known."  Take  another  reason.  An  old  preacher  was 
asked  by  his  wife:  "  Do  you  think  we  shall  know  one 
another  in  Heaven?"  He  said:  "  Wife,  we  know  one 
another  here,  and  we  certainly  will  not  have  less  sense 
in  Heaven  than  we  have  here." 

Let  us  consider  some  o/  the  incidents  of  Scripture. 
Some  say  we  do  not  learn  anything  by  the  Mount  of 
Transfiguration.  I  don't  agree  with  them.  There  was 
Jesus  on  the  Mount,  and  three  of  the  Apostles  with 
him,  and  there  appeared  Moses  and  Elias;  and  Peter 
said,  "  Let  us  build  three  tabernacles — one  for  thee  and 


SERMONS.  77 

one  for  Moses  and  one  for  Elias."  Did  not  Peter  know 
Moses  and  Elias  were  there?  And  if  Peter,  while  in 
the  flesh  could  know  them,  don't  you  suppose  he  knows 
them  now,  when  he  is  with  them  ? 

Then  take  the  parable  of  the  rich  man.  Jesus  repre- 
sents him  as  in  torment,  and  looking  up,  beholds  Laza- 
rus in  Abraham's  bosom.  Now,  if  a  man  in  hell  can 
recognize  a  man  in  Heaven,  don't  you  suppose  another 
man  in  Heaven  would  recognize  him.  I  tell  you  it  in- 
tensifies the  horrors  of  hell  to  think  that  you  can  see 
and  know  those  in  Heaven.  Moore  in  his  poem  makes 
one  say  : 

"  And  when  from  earth  his  spirit  flies, 

Just  Prophet,  let  the  damned  one  dwell 
Full  in  the  sight  of  Paradise, 

Beholding  Heaven  yet  feeling  hell." 

It  is  a  fearful  picture  of  torment,  my  friends,  that  we 
might  see  Heaven  while  feeling  hell,  but  surely  that 
truth  is  taught  in  the  parable  of  the  rich  man  and 
Lazarus. 

Again,  Jesus  says  many  shall  come  from  the  east  and 
west  and  sit  down  with  Abraham  and  Isaac  and  Jacob. 
What  does  it  mean  if  it  does  not  mean  that  in  sitting 
down  with  them  we  shall  know  them  and  know  they 
are  there  ;  and  I  tell  you  I  believe  we  shall  know  them 
without  an  introduction. 

I  believe  in  walking  down  the  golden  streets  of  the 
Beautiful  City  some  day,  in  your  spiritual  form,  you 
will  see  one  approaching  you  and  your  heart  and  mind 


78  PULPIT,    PEW  AND   PLATFORM. 

will  tell  you  there  comes  old  Isaiah ;  and  some  day  you 
will  see  a  dignified  form  approaching  you  and  you  will 
say,  "  Bless  my  soul,  there  is  old  Paul,''  and  you  will 
say,  "  Brother  Paul,  sit  down  with  us  about  twenty-five 
hundred  years  and  have  a  talk  ;  tell  me  something  of 
your  glorious  earthly  life."  Some  day,  sister,  you  will 
hear  a  sweet  song  swelling  above  the  voices  of  Heaven, 
and  you  will  say,  "  There  is  Mary  Magdalen.  How 
she  sings !  "  She  is  the  poor  sinner  who  lay  at  the  feet 
of  Jesus,  and  out  of  whom  he  cast  seven  devils.  You 
won't  need  any  introduction,  for  trammelled  and  set  free 
from  the  flesh  you  will  know  them.  What  does  the 
text  say  ?     "I  shall  know  even  as  I  am  known." 

I  think  one  of  the  strongest,  if  not  the  strongest, 
argument  in  favor  of  Heavenlv  recognition,  is  this  : 
Jesus  Christ  is  the  first-fruits  of  the  resurrection.  )\(i\v, 
my  friends,  if  he  is  the  first-fruits  of  the  resurrection, 
what  do  you  understand  the  other  fruits  to  be  ?  Some 
of  you  have  lived  in  the  country.  Suppose  some  one 
came  to  you  with  a  bundle  of  wheat  and  said  :  "  This 
is  the  first-fruit  of  my  harvest,"  would  you  think  the 
balance  of  the  harvest  was  oats  ?  Suppose  he  came  out 
of  an  orchard  with  a  basket  of  apples,  and  said,  "This 
is  the  first-fruits  of  my  orchard,"  would  you  think  the 
balance  was  oranges?  No;  you  would  expect  the  bal- 
ance to  come  pretty  well  up  to  the  sample. 

Jesus  arose  from  the  dead  and  said,  "I  am  the  first- 
fruits  of  the  resurrection."  '  What  are  we  to  expect  but 
that  the  other  fruits  of  the  resurrection  harvest  are  to  be 


SERMONS.  79 

like  him  ?  After  he  arose  from  the  dead  Mary  looked 
up  into  his  face  aud  said,  "  Master."  Thomas  touched 
his  wounded  side  and  hands  and  said,  "  My  Lord  and 
my  God."  They  knew  Jesus  after  his  resurrection ; 
and  if  he  is  the  first-fruits  of  the  resurrection,  is  not  the 
balance  to  be  like  him,  and  won't  you  and  I,  when  wc 
rise  from  our  graves  be  like  him  ?  Does  he  not  say  so? 
We  shall  be  satisfied  when  we  shall  wake  in  his  like- 
ness. They  knew  Jesus,  they  will  know  you  and  they 
will  know  me. 

But  look  at  other  things  in  the  Scripture.  Every  one 
of  us  must  give  account  of  himself  to  God,  aud  don't  you 
suppose  you  will  be  identified  when  you  stand  out  and 
give  your  account.  Furthermore,  he  says  something 
like  this  is  going  to  happen  up  there.  He  says  some  of 
us  are  coming  before  him,  and  he  will  say,  "I  was  sick 
aud  ye  visited  me,  naked  aud  ye  clothed  me,  thirsty  and 
ye  gave  me  drink;"  and  that  we,  in  our  own  proper 
persons,  will  say,  "  Lord,  when  did  we  do  these  things?" 
and  he  will  answer,  "  Inasmuch  as  ye  did  it  unto  one  of 
the  least  of  these  my  disciples,  ye  have  done  it  unto  me." 
Does  not  that  look  as  if  you  would  be  known  ?  My 
sister,  I  do  not  believe  you  have  ever  given  a  cup  of 
water  to  a  pauper  child,  or  sent  a  meal  to  a  sick  woman 
that  Jesus  Christ  has  not  treasured  it  up  and  will  re- 
member it  and  tell  you  about  it  that  day.  O,  blessed 
thought !  Who  does  not  want  to  love  such  a  Saviour, 
and  do  everything  they  can  for  him,  when  these  things 
are  true?  "  I  will  not  forget  a  cup  of  cold  water  given 
in  the  name  of  a  disciple." 


80  PULPIT,    PEW  AN'Il    PLATFORM. 

Furthermore  listen  how  Paul  talks.  When  writing 
about  the  people  he  led  to  Christ,  don't  you  recollect 
what  he  said  ?  Call  it  to  mind.  He  said,  (i  In  that 
day  ye  shall  he  my  joy  and  crown  of  rejoicing."  ''Paul, 
what  do  you  mean  ?  "  "  1  mean  that  out  of  Corinth  and 
Ephesus,  out  of  Rome  and  Athens,  out  of  every  place  I 
have  visited  and  preached  the  word.  I  shall  see  men 
and  women  and  children  win  mi  I  have  led  to  Christ  in 
heathen  lands.  O,  beloved,  if  there  is  a  joy  above  an- 
other in  Heaven  it  will  be  to  stand  and  look  into  the 
face  of  some  poor  wanderer  that  you  went  after  and 
brought  back  to  God — saved  by  your  own  efforts. 
Many  strange  things  have  happened  around  death-beds, 
which  we  can't  explain,  except  by  the  light  of  this 
truth. 

A  year  ago  to-day  I  was  preaching  in  Lexington, 
Ky.  While  sitting  one  afternoon  by  the  fire,  with  Dr. 
Felix,  and  talking  about  different  things  pertaining  to 
the  Kingdom  of  Heaven,  he  said  to  me :  "I  had  a 
strange  experience  a  short  time  ago."  I  said,  "  What 
was  it,  Doctor?"  He  replied,  "I  was  sitting  beside 
the  bed  of  a  dying  woman  ;  she  was  almost  gone;  pres- 
ently she  looked  up,  fixed  her  gaze  toward  the  ceiling 
for  a  minute  or  two  and  then  said,  'They  have  gone/ 
I  thought  her  mind  was  wandering,  and  simply  said, 
Did  you  see  some  one?  '  Yes,'  she  said,  'my  husband 
and  little  boy  were  right  there ;  they  are  gone  now.' 
Do  you  know  me?  He  thought  her  mind  was  upset. 
She  said,  '  Dr.  Felix,  of  course  I  do.     You  think  I  am 


SERMONS.  81 

out  of  my  mind,  but  I  am  not.  I  saw  them  ;  they  were 
right  there.'  Her  mother  and  several  others  sitting 
about  the  room  asked  her  :  '  Do  you  know  me  ?  '  'Do 
you  know  me?'  She  said,  '  Certainly  I  know  you; 
why  shouldn't  I  know  you  ? '  And  in  a  few  moments 
she  was  dead." 

I  read  lately  of  a  little  child  that  lost  its  mother  when 
very  young — only  two  weeks  old.  It  had  never  known 
its  mother,  and  they  raised  it  until  about  four  years  of  age, 
and  at  that  age  it  died.  When  it  was  dying  it  stretched 
up  its  little  hands  and  said,  "Oh,  there  is  mamma," 
and  the  little  hands  fell  back  on  its  breast  and  mamma 
had  her  little  one  in  her  arms. 

The  famous  Andrew  Broaddus,  of  Virginia,  when  he 
was  dying,  smiled,  and  some  one  said,  "  What  makes 
you  smile?"  He  said,  "  The  angels  are  teaching  me 
what  I  shall  do  in  Heaven." 

One  dear  to  my  heart  was  falling  asleep  in  Jesus ;  we 
were  sitting  around  the  bed,  and  she  looked  up  in 
her  mother's  face,  as  quiet  and  calm  as  I  am  at  this 
minute,  and  said,  "  Mamma,  I  see  grandma  in  Heaven." 

Now,  friends,  how  are  we  to  understand  these  things? 
I  will  tell  you  what  I  believe  about  it :  I  believe  as  we 
approach  the  dying  hour  and  come  to  the  moment  of 
departure  the  Lord  comes  to  receive  us  and  seems  to 
move  aside  the  vail,  and  gives  us  a  glimpse  into  the 
Glory  Land. 

I  have  given  you  the  reasons  why  I  believe  that  in 
the  better  world  those  who  are  saved  by  the  blood  of 
6 


82  PULPIT,    PEW  AND    PLATFORM. 

Jesus  Christ  shall  know  each  other,  and  there  is  no 
doubt  about  it  in  my  mind  ;  but  before  I  close  this  talk 
I  want  to  say  this  :  Let  us  try  to  know  each  other  a 
little  better  here.  There  is  no  question  about  knowing 
each  other  there,  as  far  as  I  am  concerned,  and,  my 
friends,  let  us  try  to  know  each  other  better  here — try 
to  get  a  little  closer  to  each  other — give  each  other  more 
help  and  sympathy,  and  try  to  get  all  our  friends  and 
loved  ones  to  journey  with  us  along  the  heavenly  road. 
That  is  what  we  are  here  to-night  for,  once  more  to  of- 
fer salvation  in  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ  to  every  un- 
saved soul  in  this  congregation,  and  say  whoever  will 
may  come  with  us  to-night  and  start  on  the  heavenly 
journey.     Will  you  go?     We  are  ready  to  help  you. 

I  once  heard  John  B.  Gough  relate  his  experience. 
He  said  when  he  was  overcome  by  drink  and  utterly 
cast  down,  as  he  walked  the  streets  with  his  toes  out  at 
holes  in  his  shoes  and  his  hair  sticking  through  holes  in 
his  hat,  and  his  clothes  old  and  ragged,  he  went  shuf- 
fling along  saying,  "  I  care  for  nobody,  and  nobody  cares 
for  me,"  a  man  met  him  and  said  :  "  Gough,  is  it  not 
time  you  were  turning  around  and  leading  a  better  life? 
I  wish  you  would  go  with  me  to-night."  Gough  did 
not  want  to  go,  but  he  insisted,  and  finally  Gough  said  : 
"  I  will  go,"  and  that  night  he  resolved  he  would  lead 
a  better  life.  The  next  day  he  stood  in  a  carpenter  shop 
with  a  chisel  in  his  hand,  working  to  get  something  to  eat 
that  day — the  chisel  turned  to  a  serpent.  He  saw  the  eyes 
glaring  up  into  his ;  hesaid  he  knew  that  it  was  not  so,  that 


SERMONS.  83 

it  was  only  delirium  in  his  brain  ;  he  knew  that  what  he 
wanted  was  liquor,  and  he  said  his  hair  stood  on  end 
and  the  sweat  broke  out  iu  great  drops  ;  the  chisel  fell 
from  his  hand,  and  from  the  shavings  looked  up  glar- 
ing into  his  face.  "  I  can't  stand  it,  I  can't  stand  it ;  I 
must  have  a  drink."  Just  then  a  Christian  lawyer 
stepped  into  the  shop  and  said  to  him,  "  Gough,  old  fel- 
low, I  have  been  looking  for  you ;  I  heard  of  you  last 
night,  and  I  have  been  hunting  for  you,  and  I  have 
come  in  here  to  tell  you  to  stand  up,  and  don't  sur- 
render !  Be  brave  !  I  have  the  best  wife  in  the  world, 
and  she  told  me  to  tell  you  she  had  hot  coffee  and  bread, 
and  if  you  come  down  she  will  play  and  sing  for  you. 
Fight  it  through,  and  you  will  come  out  all  right."  As 
that  man  walked  out  Gough  said  he  put  his  trembling 
hand  to  his  head  and  said,  "  God  helping  me,  I  will." 

That  is  what  we  want  now.  We  want  men  and 
women  for  Heaven  ;  and  I  tell  you,  wives,  mothers  and 
sisters,  you  can  do  a  wonderful  work  along  that  line  if 
you  only  will. 

I  was  in  a  street  car  this  morning,  when  w7ho  should 
step  in  but  my  old  friend  Todd  Hall,  the  converted  de- 
tective of  this  city.  As  we  sat  in  the  car  together  he 
said  :  "  "Well,  sir,  I  was  busy  all  day  yesterday  looking 
for  a  man,  and  sent  him  off  in  the  hands  of  Cincinnati 
detectives;  I  felt  very  sorry  for  him  ;  he  told  me  his  wife 
was  ill,  and  would  I  please  go  and  see  her  ;  I  saw  the  doc- 
tor and  asked  when  I  could  go,  and  when  I  went  in  he 
said,  '  Mr.  Hall,  I  know  you  ;  I  used  to  avoid  you,  but 


84  PULPIT,    PEW  AND    PLATFORM. 

I  do  not  avoid  you  any  longer.  I  belonged  to  three 
clubs,  and  I  was  a  drinking  man  and  I  gambled,  and  got 
to  going  away  from  home  and  staying  away,  and  I 
didn't  know  what  would  become  of  me  ;  one  night  I 
started  out  with  §47  in  my  pocket  and  came  back  dur- 
ing the  night  and  did  not  have  47  cents.  The  next 
morning  I  went  down  to  breakfast,  and  as  I  walked 
down  I  saw  my  wife  standing  in  one  corner  of  the  room 
and  my  daughter  at  her  side.  They  looked  pale, 
ghastly  and  forsaken,  and  I  looked  at  them  and  said : 
'  What  is  the  matter  with  you  all  ?  '  He  said  his 
daughter  looked  in  his  face  and  said,  "  Papa,  don't  you 
know  what  is  the  matter  ?  "  "  Well,"  he  said,  "  daugh- 
ter what  is  the  matter?  "  "  Papa,  do  you  know  what 
time  you  came  home  last  night?"  "  No,  child,  I  do 
not."  Then  she  said,  "  That  is  what  is  the  matter  with 
mother  and  me."  He  said  he  just  pushed  his  plate 
back  and  said,  "  That  is  enough ;  that  will  do — come 
here  both  of  you  and  kneel  down  beside  me,  and  God 
Almighty  being  my  helper,  I  will  never  drink  another 
drop."  He  said,  "  Mr.  Hall,  that  has  been  two  years 
ago."  Hall  got  up  and  put  his  arm  around  him,  and 
he  said  the  other  detective,  who  is  not  a  Christian,  sat 
there  and  cried  like  a  baby.  And  the  Doctor  said, 
"  Go  and  see  that  woman,  you  can  give  her  Christian 
comfort." 

Now,  my  friends,  you  will  know  each  other  in 
Heaven,  but  let  us  know  each  other  here,  and  let  us 
have  a  heart  of  sympathy,  a  cheering  word  and  a  help- 
ing hand. 


SERMONS.  85 

If  we  cannot  be  in  the  front  of  the  battle,  we  can  get 
our  arras  around  the  weak  and  wounded  and  help  them 
home. 

FAITH  AND  WORKS. 

And  manxj  that  believed  came  and  confessed,  and  shewed  their  deeds. — 
Acts  xix.  18. 

THIS  is  a  sort  of  summing  up  of  a  protracted  meeting 
that  was  held  by  the  Apostle  Paul  in  the  city  of 
Ephesus,  and  which  lasted  two  years  and  three  months. 
We  talk  about  revivals,  and  think  that  if  we  have  held 
one  for  two  or  three  weeks  we  have  done  something 
wonderful.  But  here  is  one  that  lasted  two  years  and 
three  months  in  one  place,  and  by  one  man  !  What  a 
time  he  must  have  had  !  What  toils,  what  discourage- 
ments, what  hardships !  Among  a  people  who  had 
never  heard  of  Jesus,  and  who,  when  they  heard  of  him, 
opposed  him  with  all  their  might ! 

Many  that  believed. — Some  did  not  believe.  On 
the  other  hand,  they  were  hardened  and  did  all  they  could 
to  break  up  the  meeting.  The  opposition  grew  so  se- 
vere at  the  end  of  three  months  that  Paul  went  out  oi 
the  church  where  he  was  preaching  into  a  school-house, 
and  held  his  meetings  there  for  two  years. 

Some  did  not  believe.  This  has  been  the  case  evei 
since  our  Master  himself  walked  the  earth.  They  did 
not  believe  in  Him.  They  did  not  believe  His  Apos- 
tles ;  and  they  do  not  believe  you  and  me  now.  We 
should  not  be  discouraged,  my  brethren,  when  this  is  the 


86  PULPIT,   PEW  AND   PLATFORM. 

case,  nor  should  your  faith  be  shaken,  if  men  tell  you 
that  they  do  not  believe  you  when  you  speak  of  Christ 
and  His  cause. 

Bat  many  did  believe. — I  am  glad  he  does  not  say 
that  they  knew,  but  only  believed.  There  is  such  a 
temptation  for  us  all  to  wish  to  know  these  things,  when 
all  we  are  required  to  do  is  to  believe  them.  Soon  after 
I  entered  the  ministry,  I  was  holding  a  meeting  in  Alex- 
andria, Virginia,  and  the  people  were  all  busy  at  work 
inviting  the  unconverted  to  the  meetings,  and  we  were 
having  a  good  time.  One  of  the  deacons  of  the  church 
went  to  see  an  old  gentleman  who  was  the  proprietor  of 
a  railroad  hotel,  and  requested  him  to  come  to  the  meet- 
ings. He  positively  refused,  saying  he  never  went  to 
church  at  all.  The  deacon  insisted.  I  tell  you,  friends, 
von  do  not  know  the  good  you  can  accomplish  by  bring- 
ing the  unconverted  to  the  meetings.  I  shall  never  for- 
get a  meeting  held  in  Eutaw  Place  Church,  in  Baltimore. 
Every  night  one  of  the  deacons  of  that  church  would 
come  up  the  aisle,  bending  under  the  weight  of  a  sixteen- 
year-old  boy.  He  was  a  paralytic.  He  would  bring 
him  and  just  pile  him  up  in  the  corner  of  the  front  pew, 
and  then  he  would  sit  over  on  a  side  pew  and  watch  the 
effect  of  the  sermon  on  little  George.  One  night,  when 
I  asked  the  people  to  arise  and  confess  Christ,  little 
George  could  not  rise,  but  raised  both  hands.  The 
deacon  hurried  over  to  me  and  touched  me  and  said, 
"  Do  you  see  little  George?"  To  this  day,  whenever  I 
meet  him  on  the  street,  and  take  him  by  the  hand,  and 


SERMONS.  87 

ask  him  when  he  saw  little  George,  he  begins  to  weep 
for  joy.  You  do  not  know  what  good  you  may  do  by 
bringing  somebody  to  church.  Well  this  brother  in 
Alexandria  insisted  on  the  old  gentleman's  coming,  and 
finally  got  him  to  consent.  lie  came  that  night,  and 
looked  around  very  uncoucerned.  I  was  struck  with 
his  appearance.  A  tall,  fine-looking  man,  and  very 
white  hair.  He  came  again  the  next  night,  and  the  next- 
All  of  us  became  interested  in  him  ;  and  one  night  while 
I  was  preaching  I  saw  him  get  out  his  handkerchief  and 
quietly  brush  a  tear  from  his  eye.  He  did  not  want 
anybody  to  see  that  he  was  weeping.  Men  do  not  like 
for  others  to  see  them  weep.  They  seem  to  think  it  is  a 
sign  of  weakness.  I  tell  you  if  some  of  you  would  weep 
over  your  sins,  it  would  be  a  sign  of  strength  in  weak- 
ness that  would  be  your  glory.  I  went  to  see  him  the 
next  day,  and  in  conversation  with  him  he  said  to  me : 
"  Mr.  Wharton,  if  I  could  only  know  that  these  things 
are  so!"  I  replied  to  him:  "The  Lord  does  not  re- 
quire you  to  know  them ;  He  only  asks  you  to  believe 
them."  His  lip  quivered  like  a  little  child's,  and  he 
said  to  me,  "  I  do  believe,  sir,  with  all  my  heart." 

Many  that  believed. — I  like  to  see  a  man  believe 
something.  You  may  not  be  able  to  tell  a  great  deal 
about  what  you  believe.  It  is  not  necessary  that  you 
should  be  a  great  theologian  in  order  to  be  a  Christian. 
We  ought  to  be  able  to  give  a  reason  for  the  hope  that 
is  in  us.  I  heard  of  a  man  once  who  was  asked  what 
he  believed.     He  said,  "  I  believe  what  my  minister 


88  PULPIT,   PEW  AND    PLATFORM. 

preaches."  "  Well,  what  does  }'our  minister  preach?" 
"He  preaches  what  I  believe."  I  once  asked  a  little 
child  what  Sunday-school  class  she  belonged  to.  She 
said,  "  I  belong  to  brother's  class."  ''Well,  what  class 
does  your  brother  belong  to?"  "Pie  belongs  to  my 
class."  "  Well,"  said  I,  "  what  class  do  you  both  belong 
to?"  She  said,  "We  both  belong  to  the  same  class." 
Now  that  little  child  was  not  trying  to  evade  my  ques- 
tion at  all.  It  was  simply  the  best  she  could  do  in  tell- 
ing me  to  what  class  she  belonged.  And  you  and  I 
need  not  be  able  to  discourse  on  great  doctrines  in  the 
Bible,  but  if  we  can  tell  in  whom  we  believe,  that  is  all 
we  need.  I  do  not  pretend  to  be  a  theologian,  nor  would 
I  undertake  to  preach  sermons  upon  the  profound  doc- 
trines of  the  Bible.  I  know  that  I  believe  in  Jesus 
Christ.  I  know  that  I  accept  His  word  as  my  hope  of 
heaven.  And  what  more  do  I  need  !  I  cannot  tell  you 
how  the  food  that  I  eat  is  prepared ;  and  if  I  were  to 
undertake  to  prepare  it  it  would  not  be  fit  for  me  or 
anybody  else  to  eat.  But  I  know  that  it  strengthens 
and  refreshes  me  and  keeps  soul  and  body  together ;  and 
I  believe  in  it.  So  it  is  with  the  religion  of  Jesus 
Christ.  I  know  it  makes  me  a  better  man,  more  useful, 
more  happy.  I  know  that  it  does  the  same  for  others; 
and  I  believe  in  it. 

Now  these  people  believed  what  Paul  preached.  At 
another  time,  when  talking  with  some  of  the  Christians 
of  that  very  city,  Paul  referred  to  his  theme  while  he 
was  among  them,  and  said,  "I  preached  repentance  to- 


SERMONS.  89 

ward  God,  and  faith  in  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ."  That 
was  what  he  preached  ;  and  that  was  what  they  be- 
lieved ;  that  if  they  would  turn  from  their  sins  and 
have  faith  in  Christ  as  their  Saviour  they  should  verily 
be  saved.  This  subject  of  repentance  is  a  very  im- 
portant matter.  What  is  repentance  ?  Some  say  it  is 
sorrow  for  sin.  Well,  that  is  so,  and  it  is  not  so.  A 
man  may  get  drunk,  and  go  home  and  beat  his  wife 
and  children,  and  wake  up  the  next  morning  and  be 
sorry  for  it  That  is  not  repentance.  Repentance  is  sor- 
row for  sin  ;  but  how  much  sorrow?  There  was  a  man 
who  lost  his  house.  He  was  a  poor  man.  The  neigh- 
bors gathered  around,  looked  into  each  other's  faces 
and  said,  "  We  are  so  sorry  for  you  !"  One  man  in  the 
crowd  put  his  hand  in  his  pocket,  and  said:  "Gentle- 
men, I  am  sorry  twenty  dollars  worth ;  how  much  are 
you  all  sorry?"  Well,  now,  if  a  man  is  sorry  for  his 
sins,  how  much  is  he  sorry?  God  says  if  he  is  sorry 
enough  to  make  him  quit  his  evil  ways  and  turn 
to  Him  for  help  to  live  a  better  life,  that  is  repen- 
tance. 

Repentance  Toward  God  and  Faith  in  Our  Lord 
Jesus  Christ. — How  many  are  looking  for  faith  in 
themselves !  You  want  to  feel  like  you  are  strong 
enough  to  be  a  Christian  yourself.  You  want  to 
have  some  assurance  that  you  are  going  to  hold  out 
faithfully  to  the  end  yourself.  The  fact  is,  you  need  to 
have  as  little  faith  as  possible  in  yourself,  for  that  will 
make  you  have  more  in  your  Saviour.     You  must  pass 


90  PULPIT,    PEW  AND    PLATFORM. 

through  this  world  leaning  on  the  arm  of  the  Lord 
Jesus  Christ,  or  you  will  never  get  to  heaven,  and  the 
sooner  you  take  Him  as  your  Saviour  the  sweeter  will 
be  your  peace,  the  happier  will  he  your  life. 

Many  tJiat  Believed  Came. — They  were  not  brought. 
"When,  in  their  hearts,  they  believed  the  Gospel, 
they  came ;  came,  I  suppose,  right  out  of  the  crowd, 
where  Paul  was.  And  I  do  not  reckon  they  came 
many  at  a  time.  I  suppose  about  one  or  two  a  night, 
perhaps.  And  one,  under  such  circumstances  as  he  was 
working,  would  give  him  as  much  joy  as  a  hundred 
would  give  us.  He  was  there  among  the  heathen.  No 
helpers,  no  sympathizers!  All  lookers  on.  If  there  is 
anything  that  chills  the  ardor  of  a  man  who  is  trying 
to  do  some  good,  it  is  to  be  surrounded  by  a  lot  of  cold- 
hearted  lookers  on,  and  out  of  sympathy  with  him,  and 
only  there  through  curiosity  or  to  criticise.  I  think  the 
man  in  a  little  town  in  this  State  was  about  right.  It 
was  a  fighting  town,  and  the  men  would  gather  in  the 
streets  and  fight  from  one  end  to  the  other.  One  day  a 
drummer,  passing  through,  was  sitting  upon  a  goods 
box,  looking  on  at  the  fight,  and  one  of  them  came  to 
him  and  commenced  on  him  with  a  hoop  pole  with  all 
his  might.  The  drummer  said,  "Stop,  man !  I  am  an 
innocent  visitor  here;  I  am  not  doing  anything!" 
"That's  it,"  said  the  fellow;  "you  are  neither  fighting 
nor  parting,  and  we  don't  allow  any  looking  on  at  this 
place."  I  have  no  doubt  that  when  one  did  come  that 
Paul  rejoiced  over  him ;  for  it  was  at  the  peril  of  their 


SERMONS.  91 

lives  in  those  days  that  men  came  out  and  took  their 
stand  at  the  side  of  Christ. 

They  Came  and  Confessed. — You  will  notice  in 
the  Scriptures  how  often  we  are  urged  to  confess  when 
we  believe  in  Christ.  Some  say,  "I  believe  in  Him; 
but  what  is  the  use  of  my  making  a  confession?" 
Well,  He  has  commanded  it.  That  is  enough  for  any 
believer.  Besides,  when  you  make  this  confession  in 
public,  you  throw  your  influence  on  the  side  of  Christ- 
ianity at  once,  and  others,  seeing  the  position  that  you 
take,  will  be  led  to  do  the  same  thing.  You  are  a 
father.  Your  boy  is  not  a  Christian.  You  cannot  urge 
your  boy  to  confess  Christ  when  your  own  influence  is 
against  it,  and  when  you  yourself  have  not  done  that 
wrhich  you  urge  him  to  do.  I  was  holding  meetings  in 
the  city  of  Richmond,  on  one  occasion.  A  prominent 
gentleman  came  up  to  me,  one  night,  and  said  :  "Mr. 
Wharton,  see  what  you  can  do  for  my  boys,  please."  I 
knew  that  he  was  not  a  Christian,  and  I  said  to  him  : 
"Will  you  help  me?"  "How  can  I  help  you?"  he 
replied.  "By  giving  yourself  to  Christ,  and  setting 
your  boys  an  example."  The  next  night  I  saw  him  in 
the  congregation,  and  alluded  to  what  had  passed  be- 
tween us  the  night  before.  At  the  conclusion  of  the 
sermon  he  was  the  first  to  come  forward,  and  he  had 
hardly  taken  his  seat  before  one  of  his  bright  boys  came 
up  and  sat  beside  his  father,  with  his  hand  upon  his 
shoulder.  There  is  every  reason  why  you  should  con- 
fess Christ  as  your  Saviour  if  you  believe  in  him.     But 


92  PULPIT,    PEW  AND    PLATFORM. 

they  did  not  stop  at  a  confession.  I  think  a  great  many 
stop  there,  and  they  ought  not  to  do  it.  You  might  say, 
Oli,  I  have  confessed  Christ;  I  confessed  him  at  a  meet- 
ing not  long  ago. 

But  notice  what  the  text  says  :  Tlicy  shewed  their 
deeds.  Whosoever  heareth  these  sayings  of  mine,  and 
doeth  them,  I  will  liken  him  unto  a  man  who  built  his 
house  upon  a  rock ;  and  the  winds  blew,  and  the  rain 
descended,  and  the  floods  came,  and  beat  upon  that 
house;  and  it  fell  not,  for  it  was  founded  upon  a  rock. 
But  whosoever  heareth  these  sayings  of  mine  and  doeth 
them  not,  I  will  liken  him  to  a  man  who  built  his  house 
upon  the  sand,  and  the  winds  blew,  and  the  rains  de- 
scended, and  the  floods  came  and  beat  upon  that  house, 
*md  it  fell,  and  great  was  the  fall  thereof. 

They  Shewed  Their  Deeds. — 

"We  live  in  deeds,  not  words; 

In  facts,  not  in  the  figures  on  the  dial.  ' 
We  should  count  the  time  by  heart  throbs. 

lie  lives  most  who  thinks  most, 
Feels  the  noblest,  acta  the  best." 

I  was  preaching  in  a  Southern  city,  and  they  brought 
in  a  jury  engaged  in  the  trial  of  a  case,  and  who  were 
spending  their  nights  playing  cards,  and  so  on.  "When 
they  went  back  to  their  room,  the  man  who  had  the 
cards  walked  up  to  the  fireplace,  and  said  :  "  Gentlemen, 
here  goes  the  pack  of  cards  ;  I  am  done."  I  knew  a 
man  who  went  home  one  night  from  the  preaching,  and 
took  his  bottle  of  liquor  half  full,  broke  the  bottle,  and 


SERMONS.  93 

said,  "God  helping  me,  I  am  done."  In  the  streets  of 
Ephesus  they  got  their  infidel  books  and  other  "works 
that  wire  opposed  to  Christianity  and  burned  them 
before  the  eyes  of  all.  They  showed  their  deeds.  Make 
your  confession  to-night,  and  from  this  good  hour,  and 
you  will  find  something  to  do  to  make  this  whole  world 
better  day  by  day  as  you  go  through.it.  The  sick  are 
to  be  visited ;  the  poor  and  needy  are  to  be  helped,  and 
this  is  Christians'  work.  One  cold  winter  day  not  long 
since,  a  Christian  woman  was  riding  in  her  carriage  up 
one  of  the  streets  of  New  York  City,  and  she  saw  a 
little  bare-footed  boy  standing  in  front  of  the  window  of 
a  shoe  store,  his  blue  feet  on  the  cold,  hard  pavement, 
and  he  poorly  clad.  She  stopped  her  carriage,  and  going 
up  to  the  side  of  the  little  fellow,  said  :  "  What  are  you 
doing  here,  little  boy  ?"  He  said,  "  I  was  asking  God 
to  send  me  a  pair  of  shoes."  She  said,  "  Come  in  here." 
And  going  up  to  the  merchant  she  asked  him  to  select  a 
pair  of  shoes  that  would  fit  that  little  boy.  "  Send  out 
and  get  a  pair  of  socks  for  him,  and  give  me  a  basin  of 
water  and  a  towel  and  some  soap."  And  seating  the 
little  fellow,  she  washed  his  feet,  wiped  them  dry  with 
a  towel,  pulled  on  the  socks,  and  put  on  the  shoes,  and 
then  said  to  him  :  "  Now,  sir,  you  have  your  shoes." 
Looking  into  her  face,  and  laughing  through  his  tears, 
he  said  to  her,  "  Are  you  God's  wife  ?"  No,  she  was 
not  God's  wife,  but  I  will  tell  you  who  she  was  :  She 
was  God's  daughter.  There  are  many  weary  souls  in 
this  city  to-night  who  might  be  saved  if  you  and  I  would 


94         PULPIT,  PEW  AND  PLATFORM. 

do  our  duty.  I  carry  a  spur  in  my  heart  day  by  day 
when  I  think  of  the  earlier  days  when  my  influence  led 

young  men  astray.  It  is  to  me  a  memory  that  urges 
me  onward,  that  day  by  day  I  may  seek  young  men 
and  turn  them  into  a  better  way,  to  a  better  life. 

They  shewed  their  deed*      It  will  not  be  long  before 
our  deeds  ™i  earth  will  ^  and  we  -hall  go  to  our 

rewc  i.  Let  us  sc  }'  .u  i*e  "ire  'Ousy -every  day. 
Some  time  ago  I  was  traveling  up  the  Rappahannock 
River,  and  from  the  deck  of  the  steamer  was  looking 
over  Lambreth's  large  garden  seed  farm.  I  could  see 
the  hands  at  work  in  many  fields,  it  was  noon  ;  I  heard 
a  great  bell  ringing,  calling  the  laborers  from  their  work 
to  rest  and  refreshment,  and  as  the  notes  of  the  bell  rang 
out  on  the  air  I  ''ould  see  them  laying  down  their  im- 
plements of  work  and  turning  toward  home.  Someday 
fi  ,m  yonder  gray  belfry  in  the  sky  the  notes  will  peal 
out  upon  the  air,  telling  you  and  me  that  the  rest  hour 
has  come  and  that  the  Lord  wants  us  to  leave  our  work 
and  come  up  with  him  at  home.  God  grant  that  the 
good  hour  may  find  you  and  me  ready  to  go,  and  that 
our  deeds  may  follow  us  here,  and  follow  us  there;  and 
may  it  be  said  of  us  :  Blessed  are  the  dead  who  die  iu 
the  Lord  ;  they  shall  rest  from  their  labors,  and  their 
works  do  follow  them. 


SERMONS.  95 

LOOK  AND  LIVE. 

Look  unto  me,  and  be  ye  saved,  all  the  ends  of  the  earth. — Isaiah  xlv. 
22. 

I  NEVER  read  this  text  that  I  do  not  connect  it  with 
a  remarkable   conversion   of  one   of  the   greatest 
preachers  who  over  livec1  .urgeon,  when  he  was 

sixte^i  yt.x-s  o.  agp,  v  y       .een-Hi  abon     his 

soul,  and  says  he  went  to  chunoi  sc\~ral  times  with  the 
hope  of  finding  the  way  of  salvation.  Finally,  one 
snowy  morning,  he  started  out  to  go  to  a  church  some 
distance  off,  but  the  snow  storm  was  so  severe  that  he 
turned  down  a  little  alley  and  went  into  a  Methodist 
chapel.  He  found  a  very  few  people  present.  A  bad 
day  will  thin  out  a  congregation.  But  the  preacher 
rose  and  said  :  "  Brethren,  there  are  not  many  of  us  here, 
only  two  or  three  of  us,  but  we  have  got  the  promis", 
and  we  must  have  service."  He  read  his  text :  "  Look 
unto  me,  and  be  ye  saved,  all  the  ends  of  the  earth" 
Spurgeon  was  sitting  alone,  back  under  the  gallery.  The 
preacher  looked  over,  and  pointing  his  finger  toward 
him,  said  in  the  midst  of  his  talk :  "  Young  man,  you 
are  not  happy.  Look  unto  Jesus,  and  he  will  save 
you."  Up  to  that  time  the  boy  had  been  looking  to 
himself,  just  as  you  and  I  did,  and  everybody — looking 
to  himself,  thinking  of  his  own  weakness  and  helpless- 
ness and  unworthiness.  "  But,"  said  he,  "  at  that  mo- 
ment I  turned  my  eyes  away  from  myself  to  my 
Saviour." 


96  PULPIT,    PEW  AND    PLATFORM. 

Look  unto  Me,  and  be  Ye  Saved. — That  word 
saved  is  a  very  important  word  to  you  and  me.  The 
question  of  salvation  is  the  most  important  that  could 
concern  us.  When  a  man  thinks  of  himself,  what  a 
sinner  he  is,  and  how  soon  he  must  depart  from  this 
world,  I  tell  you  it  opens  his  eyes. 

Look  unto  me,  and  be  ye  saved. — There  is  but  one 
answer.  There  is  only  one  way  of  salvation.  There 
is  but  one  name  under  heaven  whereby  we  must  be 
saved.  Xow,  some  say:  "Oh,  that  is  a  very  small 
matter  ;  that  is  very  simple."  Well,  did  you  ever  think 
how  simple  this  Gospel  had  to  be?  If  it  was  only 
intended  for  the  intellectual  and  the  strong-minded  and 
the  cultured,  it  might  not  have  been  simple.  But  it  is 
fir  all  the  world.  It  is  for  yonder  poor  savage.  It  is 
for  the  poor  child.  Yea,  it  is  for  even  the  weak-minded 
of  the  earth.  Some  time  since,  I  was  preaching  in 
Frankfort,  Ky.  The  superintendent  of  the  Fceble- 
Mindcd  Institute  asked  me  if  I  would  go  up  and  talk 
to  the  inmates  there.  Of  course  I  consented,  and  as  I 
stood  there  and  looked  into  the  faces  of  nearly  two 
hundred  idiots,  I  thought  that  if  there  was  a  time  when 
my  message  must  be  simple,  it  is  now ;  and  as  I  talked 
to  these  poor  creatures,  and  saw  some  of  them  weep  over 
the  story  of  a  Saviour's  love,  and  afterward  saw  some 
five  or  six  received  into  the  church  upon  profession  of 
their  faith,  I  said  :  "  Thank  God  for  a  Gospel  that  is 
simple  enough  for  an  idiot  to  comprehend."  You  may 
be  intelligent,  you  may  have  a  good  strong  mind,  you 


SERMONS.  97 

may  think  that  it  is  a  very  small  thing  to  look  at." 
Well,  it  had  to  be  made  simple  for  others  weaker  than 
yourself.  But  woe  betide  you  if  you  negleet  to  do  so 
small  a  thing  as  this  !  Aud  besides,  after  all,  it  is  not 
such  a  small  mutter.  A  lather  sends  his  child  to  a 
school.  The  child  says  :  "  Father,  I  have  no  money  to 
buy  clothes,  or  to  pay  my  board  or  tuition.  What  am 
I  to  do  for  money  to  meet  all  my  wants?"  And  the 
father  says  :  "  Look  to  me  for  that."  There  is  a  good 
deal  in  that  u  look  "  in  the  estimation  of  the  child.  And 
so  I  come  to  Jesus,  and  say  to  him :  "  Lord,  I  am  weak  i 
I  want  strength.  I  am  sinful ;  I  want  righteousness, 
lam  troubled;  I  want  peace;  and  I  shall  die  some 
day,  and  I  want  some  one  to  go  with  me  across  the  dark 
river.  I  shall  stand  at  the  judgment,  and  I  want  some 
one  to  answer  for  me."  And  he  replies  :  "  Look  to  me 
for  all  that."  I  tell  you  there  is  a  good  deal  in  that 
"  look  "  to  me. 

Now  why  should  you  look  to  Jesus  to  be  saved? 
Simply  because  there  is  not  anywhere  else  to  look.  Can 
you  look  to  yourself?  You  cannot  save  yourself.  The 
man  who  tries  to  save  himself  prevents  his  own  salvation. 
Down  at  Old  Point  a  year  or  two  ago  a  man  was 
drowning,  and  the  physician  swam  out  to  him,  and  said: 
"Don't  try  to  save  yourself  now,  and  I  will  save  yon. 
Fold  your  arms,  and  don't  touch  me."  The  man  obeyed 
orders  and  was  saved.  In  Lake  Michigan  two  men 
Mere  bathing;  one  could  swim  and  the  other  could  not. 
The  one  who  could  uot  swim  got  into  deep  water  and 
7 


98  PULPIT,    PBW   AND    PLATFORM. 

was  sinking.  The  good  swimmer  went  out  to  him.  As 
soon  as  he  touched  him,  the  drowning  man  caught  him, 

and  they  both  went  to  the  bottom.  The  swimmer  strug- 
gled out  and  left  the  man  todrown.  He  said  afterwards 
that  lie  could  have  saved  him  if  ho  had  not  tried  to  save 
himself.  And  that  is  just  about  the  way  of  it.  You 
try  to  save  yourself,  and  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  himself 
cannot  save  you.  But  look  to  him,  end  him  alone,  and 
salvation  is  yours.  Your  mother  cannot  save  you.  She 
would  if  she  could.  She  prays  for  you.  She  does  every- 
thing in  the  world  she  can  to  get  you  to  put  yourself  in 
the  hands  of  your  Redeemer.  But  she  cannot  save  you. 
Your  wife  cannot  save  you.  She  may  weep  bitter  tears 
over  your  wayward  life.  But  that  is  all  she  can  do. 
There  is  no  other  hope,  my  friends,  except  in  Jesus 
Christ. 

Now,  here  is  another  point  that  comes  up  :  Who  may 
look  ?  Is  there  any  exception  ?  Read  the  text :  Look 
unto  TTbe.f  and  be  ye  saved,  all  the  ends  of  the  earth,  i 
have  often  heard  the  expression  used  with  reference  to 
those  who  are  very  wicked,  that  they  were  the  ends  of 
the  earth  in  wickedness.  Well,  take  that  as  the  mean- 
ing of  this.  Go  out  and  find  the  worst  human  being 
that  walks  the  earth  to-day,  and  Jesus  Christ  says, 
"Tell  him  I  will  save  him."  The  newspapers  laugh  at 
us  sometimes,  and  say  that  wo  preach  a  man  from  the 
scaffold  to  the  skies,  and  that  the  nearest  way  to  heaven 
is  for  a  man  to  kill  somebody,  and  then  the  preachers 
will  pray  him  iuto  heaven.     Well,  let  them  rave  in  their 


SERMONS.  99 

folly.  The  day  that  I  shall  come  to  believe  that  Jesus 
Christ  cannot  save  a  man  from  the  gallows  or  the  peni- 
tentiary or  anywhere  else,  that  day  I  shall  feel  that  I 
have  lost  my  faith  and  should  eease  to  preach  his  word. 
George  Whitefield,  standing  in  his  tabernacle  in  London, 
and  with  a  multitude  gathered  about  him,  cried  out  : 
"  The  Lord  Jesus  will  save  the  devil's  castaways  !  "  Two 
poor  abandoned  wretches,  standing  outside  in  the  street, 
heard  him,  as  his  silvery  voice  rang  out  on  the  air. 
Looking  into  each  other's  faces,  they  said  :  "That  must 
mean  you  and  me."  They  wept  and  rejoiced.  Thev 
drew  near  and  looked  in  at  t4ie  door,  into  the  face  of  the 
earnest  messenger,  the  tears  streaming  from  his  eyes  as 
he  plead  with  his  fellow-mortals  to  give  their  hearts  to 
God.  One  of  them  wrote  him  a  little  note  and  sent  it  to 
him.  That  day,  as  he  sat  at  the  table  of  Lady  Hunting- 
don, who  was  his  special  friend,  some  one  present  said  : 
"  Mr.  Whitefield,  did  you  not  go  a  little  too  far  to-day 
when  you  said  that  the  Lord  would  save  the  devil's 
castaways?  ''  Taking  the  note  from  his  pocket,  he  gave 
it  to  the  lady,  and  said  :  "Will  you  read  that  note  aloud  ?  " 
She  read  :  "  Mr.  Whitefield,  two  poor  lost  women  stood 
outside  your  Tabernacle  to-day  and  heard  you  say  that 
the  Lord  would  save  the  devil's  castaways.  We  seized 
upon  that  as  our  last  hope,  and  we  write  you  this  to  tell 
you  that  we  rejoice  now  in  believing  in  him,  and  from 
this  good  hour  we  shall  endeavor  to  serve  him,  who  has 
done  so  much  for  ns."  Mr.  Whitefield  said  :  "  I  hope 
that  is  sufficient  answer  to  your  criticism."     Who  may 


100  PUT.PTT,    PEW   AND    PLATFORM. 

look?  Why,  every  one.  "Whosoever"  is  the  great 
word  that  the  .Master  has  written  over  the  door  of  the 
heavenly  mansion. 

When  may  we  look  ?  Now.  It  may  be  too  late  an 
hour  from  now.  To-day  only  is  yours.  1  cannot  find 
anywhere  in  the  Scriptures  that  salvation  is  promised  to- 
morrow.    It  is  to-day,  to-day,  every  time. 

How  may  we  look  ?  By  faith  in  him.  Take  him 
at  his  word.  Suppose  a  man  of  wealth  in  whom  you 
have  perfect  confidence  should  write  to  you  and  say: 
"  Whenever  you  want  money,  draw  on  me  for  it,  and  I 
will  honor  your  drafts."  Wowld  you  not  feel  perfectly 
comfortable  if  at  any  time  you  were  in  need  you  had  such 
a  privilege ;  and  would  you  not  exercise  it,  especially  if 
you  knew  that  you  conferred  a  favor,  not  only  upon 
yourself,  but  upon  him  in  doing  so?  The  case  is  sim- 
ilar. Jesus  Christ,  whose  word  you  cannot  doubt,  says  : 
"Look  to  me  for  everything  to  supply  your  Christian 
life  and  to  save  your  soul,  and  you  shall  not  be  disap- 
pointed." I  grant  you  that  there  are  difficulties  along  the 
road  to  heaven,  but  there  are  difficulties  along  every 
road,  and  it  is  to  help  you  over  these  difficulties  that 
Jesus  has  come.  They  stand  like  mountains  in  our  way 
— mountains  of  doubt ;  mountains  of  danger  ;  mountains 
of  discouragement.  Our  own  sense  of  unworthiness, 
weakness,  helplessness;  ten  thousand  things  stand  in  the 
way.  But  he  is  our  help.  Alittlegirl  lay  dying,  and 
looking  out  at  the  window,  she  said  to  her  mother  : 
"Mamma,  take  me  over  the  mountains."     Her  mother 


SERMONS.  101 

looked  out ;  there  were  no  mountains  in  view,  and  she 
said  to  the  little  thing:  "My  child,  there  are  no  moun- 
tains." She  lay  there  a  little  while  longer,  and  looking 
up  into  her  mother's  face,  said:  "Mamma,  don't  you 
hear  the  angels  calling  me  to  come  over  the  mountains  ?" 
She  knew  then  what  was  the  matter.  She  knew  that  her 
little  treasure  was  about  to  be  taken  away  from  her;  her 
little  lamb  was  dying.  Pressing  her  child  to  her  heart, 
she  said  :  "My  darling,  Jesus  will  take  mother's  baby 
over  the  mountains."  A  few  moments  and  looking 
again  into  her  mother's  face,  she  said:  "Good-by, 
mamma,  Jesus  has  come  to  take  me  over  the  moun- 
tains." And  so  with  you  and  me.  There  are  mountains 
between  us  and  our  heavenly  home  ;  but  Jesus  has  come 
to  take  us  over  the  mountains.  Let  us  look  to  him,  let 
us  trust  him,  let  us  follow  him,  and  by  and  by,  when 
we  shall  stand  upon  the  shining  heights  of  the  glorious 
land,  we  shall  see  that  the  wisest  step  that  we  ever  took 
was  that  we  looked  to  him  as  our  Savior. 

God  bless  you  every  one,  and  help  you  this  day  to 
cast  yourself  at  his  feet  and  follow  him  all  the  days  of 
your  life ! 


102  PULPIT,    l'EW   AND    PLATFORM. 


THE  HEAVENLY  RACE. 

Wherefore,  seeing  ire  «/.^o  are  compass  d  about  with  so  great  a  cloud  of 
witnesses,  let  us  lay  aside  every  weight,  and  the  sin  which  doth  so  ■ 
b  set  us,  and  let  us  run  with  patience  the  race  iliat  is  set  before  us,  looking 
unto  Jesus  the  author  and  finisher  of  our  faith. — Hebrews  xii.  vs.  1,  2. 

THE  figure  used  by  the  pen  of  inspiration  is  very 
striking  in  this  case.  It  represents  one  of  the  old 
time  scenes  when  foot  racing  was  very  popular  among 
the  people  of  ancient  times,  and  crowds  of  spectators 
gathered  in  the  pavillions  like  clouds  of  people  to  wit- 
ness the  races.  The  men  who  were  to  run  would  strip 
themselves  of  every  article  of  heavy  clothing,  lay  aside 
every  weight,  and  press  forward  toward  the  mark  with 
all  the  power  that  was  in  them,  each  striving  for  the 
victory.  This  figure  is  choseu  to  represent  the  Chris- 
tian life,  the  heavenly  race. 

In  order  to  enable  you  to  remember  my  divisions,  I 
will  use  a  kind  of  alliteration.  First,  here  is  a  good 
race  to  run  ;  second,  a  good  reason  for  running  the  race  ; 
third,  a  good  rule  for  running  the  race. 

First,  a  good  race  to  run.  It  is  a  good  race  because 
i(  goes  from  earth  to  heaven.  It  is  good  because  Jesus 
Christ  himself  made  it  and  led  the  way.  It  is  good 
because  all  the  good  of  all  the  ages  have  traveled  that 
road.  A  hundred  years  ago  three  old  Baptist  preachers 
were  arrested  in  this  state  tor  preaching  the  Gospel ; 
they  were  taken  before  the  magistrates,  and  the  case  was 
proved.     Not  only  had  they  preached  the  Gospel  con- 


SERMONS.  103 

trary  to  the  forms  of  the  Established  Church,  but  the 
charge  against  them  was  that  they  could  not  meet  a 
citizen  in  the  road  without  ramming  a  text  of  Scripture 
down  his  throat.  The  grand  old  soldiers  of  the  cross 
were  sentenced  to  the  jail,  there  to  be  imprisoned  until 
their  crime  was  expiated.  As  they  went  along  under 
the  care  of  the  sheriff,  they  struck  up  singing  : 

"Broad  is  the  road  that  leads  to  death. 
And  thousands  walk  together  there; 
But  wisdom  i-hows  a  narrow  path, 
With  here  and  there  a  traveler." 

This  is  a  good  cause,  because  in  runniug  it  you  are 
doing  good  to  yourself  and  to  others  around  you.  It 
gets  better  and  better  every  day.  I  love  sometimes  to 
hear  the  old  saints  away  up  yonder  on  the  heights  an- 
swer back  :  "  Come  along  !  The  further  you  go  the  bet- 
ter it  gets!"  Some  time  since,  a  good  Christian  woman 
called  upon  a  preacher,  and  asked  him  if  he  wanted  to 
go  and  see  a  little  sample  of  heaven  on  earth.  Of 
course  he  did.  Preachers  do  not  always  spend  their 
time  upon  the  heights  of  glory  and  joy.  They  have 
their  ups  and  downs  as  well  as  other  men,  their  days  of 
trial,  difficulties,  discouragements;  and  so  when  a  sam- 
ple of  heaven  is  on  hand  they  are  as  eager  to  see  it  as 
other  men.  He  went  with  the  good  woman,  walked 
along  several  streets,  and  by  and  by  came  to  a  wretched- 
looking  old  tenement.  They  knocked  at  the  door,  and 
were  admitted  to  the  lower  room,  where  little  ragged 
children  were  crawling  about  the  floors,  and  the  un- 


104  PULPIT,   PEW   AND    PLATFORM. 

swept  house  gave  signs  of  neglect.  He  said  to  her : 
"Is  this  heaven?"  She  replied,  "  Follow  me."  Up 
.the  creaking  stairway  they  went  to  the  second  floor, 
and  instead  of  getting  better  it  seemed  worse.  He  said 
to  her:  "Are  you  sure  this  is  the  house?  It  dors 
not  seem  to  me  such  a  good  place."  She  replied,  "  Fol- 
low me.  It  is  better  higher  up."  They  reached  the 
third  story,  and,  sure  enough,  it  did  seem  to  be  a  little 
better,  but  even  then  he  i'elt  a  little  depressed  in  con- 
templating the  surroundings.  Again  he  questioned  his 
friend,  and  she  replied  :  ••  Come  on  !  It  is  better  higher 
up."  And  to  the  fourth  story  they  went,  and  were 
ushered  into  a  little  room  nicely  carpeted,  prettily 
papered,  pictures  on  the  wall,  birds  singing  in  their 
cages,  flowers  on  the  table;  and  there  upon  a  clean, 
white,  sweet  bed  lay  a  fair,  elderly  woman,  who  for 
years  had  been  confined  upon  her  bed  of  sickness,  and 
was  as  bright  and  joyous  as  an  angel.  This  road  that 
we  travel  gets  better  as  we  go,  and  higher  and  higher 
as  wc  climb  we  shall  find  ourselves  improved,  our  lives 
more  useful,  our  hearts  more  happy,  the  outlook  more 
inviting  and  the  pathway  more  glorious. 

A  good  reason  for  running  the  race:  Seeing  we  are 
comixissul  about  with  so  great  <i  cloud  of  witnesses.  This 
is  susceptible  of  two  interpretations.  It  may  mean  a 
cloud  of  witnesses  for  the  truth.  People  have  stood  up 
and  testified  for  the  truth,  not  only  by  their  lips,  hut 
by  their  lives.  It  seems  to  me  that  this  is  probably  the 
idea  that  the  Apostle  Paul  had  in  his  mind,  for  if  you 


SERMONS.  105 

will  read  the  eleventh  chapter  immediately  preceding,  yon 
-will  find  what  isgenerally  termed  the  work  of  faith.  He 
is  referring  evidently  to  this  when  he  says  we  arc  com- 
passed about  by  so  great  a  cloud  of  witnesses.  Men 
and  women  who  love  the  truth  live  the  truth  and 
die  for  the  truth.  You  and  I  are  blest  with  just  such 
witnesses.  I  reckon  I  have  said  it  a  thousand  times,  and 
I  say  it  here  again  to  day,  that  if  there  were  no  other 
witnesses  on  this  earth  to  the  truth  of  the  Gospel,  if 
I  knew  every  other  man  and  woman  who  professes  the 
name  of  Jesus  to  be  a  hypocrite,  yet  the  life  and  the  death 
of  my  sainted  mother  would  to  my  mind  be  all  the 
evidence  that  I  would  ask  to  prove  to  me  that  Chris- 
tianity is  true  and  a  blessing  to  every  one  who  em- 
braces it.  Say  what  you  will  of  the  inconsistencies  of 
Christians,  God  has  given  to  you  and  to  me  too  a  suili- 
cient  number  of  those  whom  we  know  to  be  sincere  and 
true  and  who  by  their  walk  and  conversation  have 
proved  to  us  the  glory  of  their  religion.  But  let  us 
take  the  other  interpretation,  and  say  that  it  means 
witnesses  of  our  life  in  the  same  sense  that  people  sat 
around  in  the  pavilions  and  witnessed  the  running  of  the 
races — a  witness  of  that  kind.  Just  as  you  would  say, 
"Two  men  were  fighting  on  the  street  and  I  witnessed 
it."  Now,  in  this  view,  there  are  many  witnesses,  and 
whether  this  be  the  proper  interpretation  of  the  text  or 
not,  it  is  a  mighty  reason  for  running  this  race  with  all 
earnestness  and  zeal.  There  are  witnesses  in  your  own 
home ;    mother,   father,  wife,    husband,  child,  brother, 


106        PULPIT,  PEW  AND  PLATFORM. 

p,  all  who  are  under  our  own  roof,  are  witnesses  of  the 

kind  of  life  we  Live  ;  an  1  I  bell  yon  if  yon  want  to  find 
out  what  sort  of  a  Christian  a  man  or  woman  is,  you 
ask  th  ■  home  folks.  At  home  a  man  is  generally  what 
he  really  is.  Now  these  witnesses  at  home  will  be 
helped  or  hurt  just  in  accordance  as  we  run  faithfully 
the  race  that  is  set  before  us.  There  are  witnesses  in 
the  church.  Our  brethren  here  will  be  looking  on  to 
sec  how  we  run,  not  with  the  hope  that  we  shall  fail, 
but  with  the  deepest  desire  that  we  shall  be  successful. 
And.  our  church  will  prosper  in  accordance  with  our 
faithfulness  in  this  direction.  There  are  witnesses  in  the 
world,  thousands  of  them.  Tiny  say  that  the  world 
docs  not  care  whether  a  man  is  a  Christian  or  not.  It 
h  a  mistake.  The  world  is  at  enmity  with  Jesus <  'hrist 
and  his  can-",  and  when  a  Christian  man  falls  the 
world  i>  glad  of  it.  A  consistent,  godly  Christian  life 
is  a  blessing  to  any  community;  it  is  more  powerful 
than  language,  and  is  brought  more  before  the  public 
gaze  than  books.  Where  one  man  reads  his  Lnble  a 
hundred  will  read  a  Christian.  We  are  living  epistles, 
and  known  and  read  of  all  men.  But  there  is  a  Wit- 
ness who  looks  on  every  step  we  take.  With  the  in- 
tense3t  interest  he  runs  at  our  side.  If  we  falter,  he 
cheers  us.  If  we  stumble,  he  helps  us  up.  If  we 
become  depressed  and  discouraged,  he  gives  us  grace  and 
strength  and  joy.  It  is  Jesus.  Every  day  and  eveiy 
hour  his  loving  eyes  are  upon  you,  my  fellow-Chris- 
tians, and  you  give  him  joy  by  sticking   faithfully  to 


SERMONS.  107 

your  work.  The  owner  of  the  finest  running  horses  in 
the  world  will  stand  on  the  race-course  and  watch  his 
horses  run  with  an  interest  that  may  be  felt  but  never 
can  be  expressed.  And  yet  this  is  only  a  feeble  illus- 
tration of  the  heart-felt  interest  that  Jesus  has  in  every 
disciple  who  runs  the  Christian  race.  So  you  see,  here 
is  a  reason  for  running  the  race:  witnesses  everywhere  : 

"  A  cloud  of  witnesses  around 
Hold  thee  in  full  survey. 
Forget  the  steps  already  trod, 
And  onward  urge  thy  way  !" 

A  good  rule  for  running  the  race  :  Lay  aside  every 
weight.  Suppose  I  was  going  to  run  a  race  with  one  of 
you,  and  I  should  come  out  with  a  pair  of  heavy  boots 
on,  an  immense  overcoat,  a  great  big  burden  strapped  to 
my  back,  and  take  my  stand  for  the  race.  Why  people 
would  laugh  at  me.  They  would  say:  "Man  alive! 
how  can  you  hope  to  run  a  race  encumbered  with  all 
those  weights?  Take  off  those  heavy  boots  and  put  on 
light  shoes  ;  lay  aside  that  great  burden  on  your  back  ; 
throw  off  your  overcoat ;  then  you  may  run  !  How  often 
do  we  see  Christians  trying  to  do  the  very  same  thing ! 
Here  they  come  with  weights  of  fears  and  weights  of 
doubt,  and  trying  to  carry  with  them  all  the  old  associa- 
tions of  the  past;  and  then,  worse  than  everything  else, 
buckling  on  their  back  the  very  world  itself  and  hoping 
to  take  that  with  them  along  in  the  heavenly  race  !  Lay 
aside  every  iveight.  Sometimes  I  am  asked,  is  it  wrong 
to  dance  ?    Is  it  sinful  to  go  to  the  theater  ?    Is  it  wicked 


108  PULPIT,    PEW    AND    PLATFORM. 

to  taken  glass  of  wine?  My  answer  to  this  is,  It  is 
wrong  to  do  anything  that  proves  a  weight  in  vour 
Christian  life.  If  you  find  that  any  of  these  things  re- 
tard your  progress  and  keep  you  hack  from  running thia 
glorious  race,  lay  them  aside,  no  matter  what  it  may  be. 
If  it  is  like  plucking  out  a  right  eye  or  cutting  off  a 
right  arm,  let  it  come;  better  that  than  have  it  drag 
you  down  and  make  you  fail  in  your  Christian  life. 
Lay  aside  every  weight,  and  the  sin  that  doth  so  easily 
beset  you.  Every  one  has  his  besetting  sin,  and  some 
have  a  good  many  more  than  other-,  it  seems  to  me. 
Take  the  one  sin  of  strong  drink.  What  a  terrible 
weakness  that  is  with  men,  and  women  too  sometimes  ! 
One  of  the  worst  features  of  intemperance  in  this  age  is 
that  it  is  taking  hold  of  women  as  well  as  men.  There 
are  some  men  who,  if  they  take  one  drink,  will  get  drunk 
just  as  sure  as  they  live.  It  seems  to  wake  up  the  very 
devil  in  them,  and  they  are  never  satisfied  until  tiny  are 
drunk.  Now  a  man  like  that  ought  to  recognize  that 
drink  is  his  besetting  sin,  and  lie  should  lay  it  aside.  It 
is  his  weak  point.  That  is  the  place1  for  him  to  throw 
up  his  breastworks  and  put  his  best  guns,  while  he  asks 
the  Lord  Jesus  to  stand  by  him  in  the  fight.  With 
others  the  besetting  sin  is  temper.  J  have  known  people 
who  were  very  good  indeed,  and  yet  on  the  slightest 
provocation  would  lly  oil' the  handle  and  hurt  some  one. 
Too  much  temper!  With  others  it  is  a  fondness  for 
making  money.  One  of  the  greatest  sins  of  this  age 
is    covetousness.     Everybody   wants    to    make    money, 


SERMONS.  109 

saints  and  sinners,  men  and  women,  big  and  little, 
preachers  and  people;  everybody  in  one  great  rush  for 
money.  Now  it  is  a  very  important  thing  to  have,  there 
is  no  doubt  about  that.  But  a  man  should  watch  him- 
selt  and  see  that  it  does  not  get  the  upper  hand  of  him. 
God  does  not  condemn  a  man  for  having  riches ;  but  he 
does  condemn  a  man  for  allowing  riches  to  have  him. 
Let  money  be  your  servant,  and  all  is  well.  Let  it  be- 
come your  master,  and  destruction  is  at  the  door  of  your 
soul.  Again,  with  a  great  many  the  besetting  sin  is 
sensitiveness.  How  easy  it  is  for  you  to  have  your  feel- 
ings hurt !  Some  people  go  around  as  if  they  were  on  a 
hunt  for  some  one  to  hurt  their  feelings.  You  sro  to 
church  and  if  your  pastor  does  not  get  down  the  aisle, 
shake  hands  with  you  and  make  a  great  ado  over  you, 
you  go  home  and  say  he  does  not  care  for  you.  If  a 
member  of  the  family  makes  a  present  to  another  member 
of  the  family,  you  come  to  the  conclusion  that  he  does 
not  love  you,  and  you  go  about  unhappy  about  it  for 
days.  The  difficulty  with  sensitive  people  is  that  they 
get  hurt,  and  do  not  say  anything  about  it.  If  they 
would  only  speak  of  it  and  give  their  friends  an  oppor- 
tunity to  explain,  everything  would  be  all  right  directly. 
But  it  strikes  in  on  them  like  the  measles,  and  they  go 
about  and  carry  it  all  inside  of  them,  just  burning  up 
and  dying,  when  it  could  be  settled  in  a  minute  if  they 
would  let  somebody  know  it.  Sensitiveness  is  a  beset- 
ting sin,  and  makes  us  and  everybody  around  us  un- 
happy.    I  sympathize  with  you,  my  friend,  if  you  have 


110  PULPIT,    PEW   AND    PLATFORM. 

a  sensitive  nature;  but  I  warn  you  to  avoid  it  and  make 
up  your  mind  that  you  will  not  allow  anybody  to  hurt 
your  feelings.     I  think  if  I  bad  to  go  to  either  extreme, 

I  should  rather  be  like  a  man  who  went  to  a  party  and 
was  not  invited.  They  gave  him  every  intimation  that 
they  did  not  want  him.  Finally,  the  gentleman  of  the 
house  himself  told  him  that  he  was  sorry  to  say  that 
his  guests,  who  were  invited,  were  all  who  were  expected 
to  come.  Even  then  the  man  did  not  take  his  departure. 
At  length  the  gentleman  of  the  house  came  to  him,  took 
him  by  the  collar,  led  him  to  the  door,  and  told  him  he 
must  request  him  to  leave.  Whereupon  the  man  said  : 
'•I  can  take  a  hint  as  well  as  anybody  ;  I  don't  believe 
you  all  want  me  here."  Whatever  else  may  be  said  of 
that  man,  he  was  not  sensitive.  Oh,  there  is  so  much 
suffering  on  account  of  sensitive  natures  that  it  be- 
comes  a  torment  to  the  souls  of  some. 

But  why  should  I  multiply  these  painful  cases!  Each 
one  knows  his  own  besetting  sin,  and  if  we  would  run 
the  race  successfully,  we  must  lay  them  aside. 

Run  with  patience  the  race  that  is  set  before  lis.  You 
must  run.  You  must  get  along.  There  is  no  tarrying. 
Haste  not,  rest  not,  was  the  motto  of  the  German  poet 
Goethe,  and  it  was  a  good  one.  Festina  lente — make 
haste  slowly — run  with  patience.  Now  you  must  have 
patience,  patience  with  yourself.  Why  every  day  you 
will  find  yourself  saying,  "  What  is  the  use  for  me  to  try 
to  be  a  Christian  ?"  Some  time  ago  I  was  sitting  in  a 
home,   and  a  little  boy  came  running  in  cryiug  ;    he 


SERMONS.  Ill 

crawled  up  in  his  mother's  lap,  and  said:  "Mamma, 
mamma,  it  is  no  use,  mamma  I"  "  What  are  you  talking 
about,  my  child?"  "  No  use  for  mo  to  try  to  be  a  good 
boy;  I  can't  doit!"  She  kissed  the  little  fellow,  and 
said  :  "  Why,  my  child,  you  are  just  as  good  as  you  can 
be."  Everybody  does  wrong  sometimes.  I  think  that 
is  the  way  with  God's  children.  Be  patient  with  your- 
selves. If  you  do  not  run  well  to-day,  take  heart ;  you 
will  do  better  to-morrow.  And  then  be  patient  with 
those  around  you.  They  are  mortals  like  yourself; 
thev  have  their  trials,  their  heart-aches,  their  discourage- 
ments,  and  sometimes  they  may  not  treat  you  as  well  as 
you  think  they  should.  Sometimes  they  may  not  act 
like  angels.  Sometimes  they  may  make  grievous  blun- 
ders and  errors.  But  be  patient  with  them  ;  they  will 
do  better  some  other  time;  we  do  not  always  feel  well 
and  strong  and  happy.  Let  us  be  patient  with  each 
other. 

And  be  patient  with  your  Lord.  It  is  not  for  you 
to  judge  what  sort  of  discipline  he  must  put  upon  you  in 
this  world.  It  is  not  for  you  and  me  to  say  just  when 
afflictions  must  come,  or  when  they  must  not  come.  lie 
will  explain  to  us  after  a  time.  Spurgeon  stood  one  day 
at  the  bedside  of  one  of  his  sick  little  orphans  who  was 
dying,  and  taking  the  little  fellows  hand  in  his,  he  said 
to  him  :  "You  will  see  Jesus  before  I  will.  He  will 
tell  you  why  you  had  to  be  so  afflicted  in  this  world." 
Do  not  get  out  of  patience  and  say  the  Lord  does  not 
love   you  or  that  you   are  not  his  disciple,  or  anything 


112  PULPIT,    PEW  AND    PLATFORM. 

else  that  at  all  savors  of  complaint.     Rather  be  like  the 
sweet  .singer  who  said  : 

If  thou  shouldsl  call  me  to  resign 
What  nit  st  1  prize  it  ne'er  was  mine, 
I  only  yield  thee  what  is  thine. 
Thy  will  be  done. 

Mud  with  patience  the  race  that  is  set  before  you.  And 
now  the  last  and  the  besl  rule  of  all,  and  the  one  that 
covers  all  cases  and  readies  all  things,  is  this:  Look  unto 
Jesus,  ll'i-  author  and  finisher  of  our  faith.  With  your 
eyed  fixed  upon  him;  with  entire  reliance  upon  his 
promise ;  with  unswerving  fidelity  to  his  command- 
ments, yon  will  not  only  run  successfully,  but  yon  will 
win  the  race,  lie  is  the  author  and  finisher  of  our 
faith,  the  alpha  and  omega,  tin-  beginning  and  the  end, 
the  all  in  all.  We  shall  reach  the  end  by  and  by. 
When  old  Christmas  Evans  was  dying,  they  stood  around 
his  bed  and  listened  for  his  last  word.  In  the  silence 
of  the  death-room,  when  you  could  almost  hear  the 
beating  of  the  hearts  of  the  loved  ones  gathered  there 
these  words  broke  the  silence  and  were  the  last  words  of 
this  great  and  good  man  of  God  :  "Drive  on  !"  He  had 
finished  his  heavenly  race,  and  at  the  end  of  the  journey 
had  stepped  into  the  chariot  thai  was  to  take  him  home 
to  he  with  God.  Drive  on  !  So  let  us  travel  on  day  by 
day,  our  trust  in  God,  leaning  on  the  arm  of  our  Re- 
deemer and  Lord,  with  hopeful  hearts,  patient  and  per- 
severing ;  we  shall  at  last  reach  the  glorious  end  and 
looking  hack-  over  the  race,  we  shall  thank  God  for  the 


SERMONS.  113 

day  when  we  first  placed  our  feet  last  in  the  "broad  and 
shining  way,  and  set  our  faces  steadily  toward  the  City  of 
Eternal  Rest  and  Peace. 


THE  BELIEVER'S  QUESTION. 

What  shall  I  render  vnto  the  Lord  for  all  his  benefits  toward  me  f — 
Psalm  cxvi.  12. 

GOD  deals  with  his  children  as  parents  generally  deal 
with  theirs.  Sometimes  he  makes  threats,  some- 
times he  uses  the  rod  ;  but  most  generally  he  controls 
and  directs  our  ways  by  his  kindness  to  us.  The  strong- 
est appeal  that  is  made  to  the  human  heart  is  the  appeal 
to  our  gratitude.  The  question  that  arises  in  the  mind 
of  every  one  who  appreciates  the  goodness  of  God  is, — 
What  can  I  do  for  him  who  has  done  so  much  for  me  ? 
Not  long  ago  I  was  holding  a  meeting  in  a  little  town 
in  Virginia,  and  a  gentleman  asked  me  to  ride  with 
him  out  on  his  farm.  As  we  were  passing  through  his 
large  estate  he  said  to  me  :  "  I  have  asked  you  to  take 
this  ride  in  order  to  have  some  conversation  with  you. 
I  am  now  over  fifty  years  of  age,  surrounded  by  a 
happy  family,  in  a  pleasant  home,  with  a  good  business 
in  town,  and  this  farm  through  which  we  are  now  pass- 
ing. It  does  seem  to  me  the  time  has  come  for  me  to 
show  some  gratitude  to  God,  who  has  done  so  much 
for  me." 

There  are  some  people  who  seem  to  think  that  they 
owe  nothing  to  God.     They  never  thank  him  for  his 
8 


114  PULPIT,    PEW   AND    PLATFORM. 

blessings;  they  never  look  up  into  his  face  with  even  a 
smile  of  appreciation  for  all  his  goodness  to  them.  You 
know  there  is  a  certain  animal  that  never  looks  up  to 
the  man  that  threshes  down  the  apples.  He  will  eat 
them  as  long  as  you  knock  them  off)  but  never  look  up. 
A  dog  will ;  with  a  most  intelligent  look,  he  will  say  to 
his  master:  "I  thank'  you  for  this  bread."  Now,  there 
arc  people  in  the  world  who  enjoy  all  the  blessings  scat- 
tered around  them,  but,  instead  of  words  and  deeds  of 
thankfulness,  life  is  one  long  state  of  forgetfulness  of 
all  favors  with  them.  Ingratitude  is  one  of  the  worst 
characteristics  of  our  nature,  even  between  man  and 
man.     You  know  Shakespeare  speaks  of  it,  and  says: 

"Ingratitude,  thou  marble-hearted  fiend  I 
How  Bharper  than  a  serpent's  tooth  it  is, 
To  have  a  thankless  child!" 

Now,  the  question  of  a  believer's  heart  is, — "What 
shall  I  render  unto  the  Lord  for  all  his  benefits  toward 
me?  We  are  so  apt  to  forget  benefits  and  blessings, 
and  to  remember  our  sorrows  and  afflictions!  You  re- 
member every  spell  of  sickness  you  have  had,  all  the 
hard  winters,  every  time  death  has  come  into  your  home 
and  swept  away  some  treasure  of  your  heart.  But  you 
forget  the  bright,  sunny  days,  the  prosperous  years,  the 
loved  ones  gathered  around  you.  We  even  hear  people 
talking  about  other  times.  They  say:  "Oh,  I  have 
^'i'u  better  days  than  these.  Once  I  lived  in  a  splendid 
mansion,  wore  the  finest  clothes,  had  everything  my 
heart  could  desire.     Now  I  live  in  an  humble  cottage, 


SERMONS.  115 

my  husband  is  a  hard-working  man,  and  it  takes  all 
that  we  can  do  to  support  the  children.  I  have  a  hard 
time  now."  Yes;  and  you  may  be  a  thousand  times 
more  blessed  to-day  than  you  were  then.  You  may 
wear  calico  and  live  in  an  humble  home  ;  but  God  has 
given  you  a  husband  whose  life  you  may  bless,  and  lit- 
tle children  whose  souls  you  may  save.  You  are  living 
to  a  nobler  purpose  now  than  ever  you  did  in  the  days 
that  you  call  golden,  simply  because  you  had  a  few  more 
of  this  world's  goods.  God  knows  what  is  best  for  our 
discipline.  It  is  for  you  and  me  to  inquire  what  we  can 
do  for  him. 

In  the  Psalm  from  which  this  text  is  taken,  David 
is  relating  his  experience.  He  handles  both  sides  of  the 
question — what  the  Lord  has  done  for  him,  and  what  he 
proposes  to  do  for  the  Lord.  Some  one  has  said  that 
scriptural  truth  is  never  as  beautiful  as  when  she  comes 
forth  adorned  with  jewels  from  her  own  treasury.  So, 
from  this  very  psalm,  let  us  take  the  thoughts  that  sur- 
round this  text,  and  we  shall  find  that  he  is  making  ref- 
erence to  what  God  has  done  for  him,  and  then  he  turns 
to  what  he  will  do  for  God — three  on  each  side.  Let 
us  consider  these. 

I  love  the  Lord,  because  he  hath  heard  my  voice  and 
my  supplications.  In  other  words,  because  he  has  heard 
my  prayers.  That  is  one  benefit  he  has  bestowed  upon 
me.  Can  yon  say  that?  Looking  back  over  your  life 
to-day,  can  you  not  say  Amen  to  this  expression  ?  I 
love  the  Lord  because  he  has  heard  me.     We  speak  of 


116  PULPIT,    PEW   AND    PLATFORM. 

an  interview  with  the  President  of  the  United  States, 
of  an  auclienee  with  the  Queeu  ;  but  far  above  these  is 
the  privilege  of  railing  upon  the  King  of  kings  and 
tin'  Lord  of  lords,  and  have  him  hear  and  answer  our 
prayers.  We  say  there  is  something  swift  about  the 
telegraph,  something  quick  in  the  lightning's  flash;  but 
here  is  something  that  travels  on  fleeter  foot  than  the 
lightning  that  leaps  along  the  skies.  It  is  the  answer 
of  our  Heavenly  Father  to  the  prayer  of  his  child.  "It 
shall  come  to  pass  that  before  they  call  I  will  answer, 
and  while  they  are  yet  speaking  1  will  hear."  When  I 
was  a  little  boy  I  slept  in  a  trundle-bed  in  my  mother's 
chamber.  Sometimes  during  the  night  I  was  awake  and, 
in  the  dark,  would  become  frightened.  I  would  call  to 
her:  "Mother!"  and  she  never  failed  to  answer.  It 
seemed  to  me  she  was  always  awake.  She  would  say: 
"  What  do  you  want,  my  child  ?  "  That  was  what  I 
wanted,  only  to  know  that  she  was  awake  and  with  me. 
I  was  not  afraid  of  the  darkness  then.  And  so  I  count  it 
a  blessing  above  all  blessings,  that  by  night  and  by  day, 
wherever  I  may  be,  I  may  call  upon  him  whose  ears  are 
open  to  my  cry.  Coming  from  Europe  some  years  ago, 
our  ship  was  in  a  storm  several  days,  and  the  machinery 
got  out  of  order.  As  she  was  along  on  her  side  and 
drifting  before  the  gale — it  was  one  of  these  dark,  wet- 
blanket  sort  of  days — I  climbed  upon  the  deck  and 
walked  to  where  I  saw  an  old  man  holding  to  the  hatch- 
way, and  said  to  him:  "This  is  a  serious  business." 
He  replied  to  me:  "  Yes;  it  will  be  a  pretty  tale  to  tell 


SERMONS.  117 

a  month  from  now,  that  the  'City  of  Chester'  left  Liv- 
erpool, and  has  been  heard  from  no  more."  I  thought 
to  myself :  "  Well,  old  gentleman,  I  will  get  away  from 
you.  That  is  not  the  kind  of  talk  I  want  to  hear."  As 
1  walked  from  him  these  words  came  into  my  heart  and 
out  of  my  mouth:  "The  Lord  of  hosts  is  with  us- 
The  God  of  Jacob  is  our  refuge." 

I  tell  you,  friends,  when  you  think  about  the  bless- 
ings that  God  has  given  you  just  put  a  peg  right  here: 
He  has  heard  my  prayer ;  and  on  that  peg  you  may 
hang  ten  thousand  of  the  brightest  blessings  of  your  life. 

I  arts  brought  low,  and  he  helped  me.  This  is  another 
benefit.  In  many  ways  you  and  I  have  been  brought 
low  as  we  have  traveled  along  the  journey  of  life.  Many 
times,  I  suppose,  you  have  been  brought  low  in  a  finan- 
cial sense.  I  know  I  have.  I  have  seen  the  c^ay  I 
would  have  been  glad  to  get  a  single  nickel,  a  thousand 
miles  from  home,  not  a  dollar  in  my  pocket ;  but  he 
brought  me  out  of  it  somehow.  Here  we  are  to-day 
with  our  usual  share  of  earthly  comforts ;  something  to 
eat,  something  to  wear  and  a  shelter  from  the  storm  ;  the 
sheriff  is  not  on  our  track  and  the  almshouse  has  not 
sent  its  carriage  for  us  yet  awhile.  Thank  God  for  food 
and  raiment  and  somewhere  to  lay  our  head.  We  have 
been  brought  low  in  sickness.  I  was  talking  with  a 
man  the  other  day  who  said  to  me :  "A  few  years  ago  I 
was  sick  unto  death  ;  my  family  had  told  me  good-bye; 
I  closed  my  eyes  and  was  waiting  for  death  to  come  at 
any  minute.     I  asked  the  Lord  to  raise  me  up  once 


118        PULPIT,  PEW  AM'  PLATFORM. 

more,  and  promised  him,  if  he  would  do  so,  T  would 
try  to  live  a  better  life.  He  did  raise  mc  up,  and  I 
have  tried  hard  from  thai  hour  and  am  trying  now  to 
carry  out  my  promise."  Many  a  time  you  and  I  have 
been  much  nearer  death  than  we  knew.  Often  we  have 
been  brought  low;  but  we  have  been  raised  up  again, 
and  here  we  are  enjoying  the  blessings  of  health  and 
strength  as  we  pursue  the  duties  that  rise  before  us  day 
by  day.  And  then  how  low  we  have  been  brought  in 
affliction  !  Why,  you  remember  just  as  well  as  if  it 
were  yesterday  how  death  came  into  your  home,  and 
how  you  stood  beside  the  bed  of  your  dying  loved  one 
and  felt  that  your  own  poor  heart  would  break  as  you 
saw  your  darling  passing  away  from  earth.  I  have 
sometimes  been  asked  what  I  thought  was  the  most  try- 
ing1 hour  when  we  lose  our  loved  ones.     It  is  not  when 

■ 

we  tell  them  good-bye,  nor  is  it  when  we  stand  at  the 
grave  and  hear  the  clods  rattle  upon  the  coffin.  It  is 
when  we  come  back  home,  to  the  empty,  desolate,  de- 
serted home.  The  very  light  seems  to  have  gone  out  of 
the  house  and  out  of  our  life.  Then  it  was,  my  friends, 
that  the  Lord  was  your  strength.  You  were  brought 
low,  and  he  helped  you. 

\w)  then  we  have  been  brought  low  by  sin.  Ah  me, 
how  this  burden  of  guilt  presses  upon  the  heart!  We 
look  around  usj  we  look  within  us  ;  we  look  back  over 
the  road  we  have  traveled  ;  and  the  weight  is  so  heavy 
that  we  feel  like  falling  down  in  the  dust  before  (rod 
and  crying  out:  "God,  be  merciful  to  me,  a  sinner ! " 


SERMONS.  1 1 9 

Did  you  ever  have  that  weight  pressing  on  your  soul, 
and  did  you  go  to  him  and  have  the  burden  lifted  ? 
Have  you  ever  passed  that  lovely  spot  in  life  where,  like 
Christian,  you  stood  gazing  upon  the  cross  until  the 
burden  rolled  away  and  out  of  sight  forever?  If  you 
have,  then  you  know  what  it  is  to  say :  "  I  was  brought 
low  in  sin,  and  he  helped  me." 

And  so  the  time  is  coming  when  we  shall  be  brought 
low  by  the  hand  of  Death,  and  our  bodies  shall  be  low- 
ered in  the  grave.  But  there  is  a  hand  that  can  reach 
us  there,  and  as  we  shall  rise  from  the  tomb  in  the  glor- 
ious resurrection  we  shall  exclaim,  with  far  greater  joy 
than  ever  we  have  spoken  it  here,  "  I  was  brought  low, 
and  he  helped  me  !" 

Thou  hast  delivered  my  soul  from  death,  mine  eyes 
from  tears,  and  my  feet  from  falling.  This  is  the  third 
benefit  of  which  this  happy  believer  is  speaking.  I 
cannot  go  so  far  as  that  yet ;  neither  can  you.  I  cannot 
soy,  "  Thou  hast  delivered  mine  eyes  from  tears." 
There  are  more  tears  for  us  to  shed  yet — tears  on  ac- 
count of  our  sius — tears  on  account  of  our  sorrows — 
tears  on  account  of  our  poor,  wayward,  imperfect  lives- 
More  tears  for  you  and  me  yet  a  while.  And  then 
we  cannot  say,  •'  Thou  hast  delivered  my  feet  from  fall- 
ing." We  may  fall  at  any  hour.  There  is  no  telling 
dear  friends,  what  is  in  store  for  you  and  me.  The 
tempter  is  very  strong  ;  the  enticements  and  allurements 
of  the  world  are  all  around  us;  and  the  flesh  is  weak. 
I  think  it  was  John  Bunyan  who  said,  as  hesawacrim- 


120  PULPIT,    PEW  AND    PLATFORM. 

inal  on  his  way  to  the  gallows  :  "  There  goes  John 
Bunyan  but  for  the  grace  of  God."  And  so  when  you 
and  I  sec  a  fallen  fellow  man,  let  us  not  boast;  for  we 
might  have  done  even  worse  if  placed  under  similar  cir- 
cumstances. 

But  I  will  tell  you  what  we  can  say,  and  with  perfect 
assurance  :  "  Thou  hast  delivered  my  soul  from  death." 
If  to-day  you  are  a  sincere  believer  in  the  Lord  Jesus 
Christ,  and  have  committed  to  him  your  eternal  inter- 
ests, you  are  safe;  for  he  has  entered  into  a  covenant  to 
take  you  home  at  last  to  heaven.  He  that  heareth  my 
words  and  believeth  on  him  that  sent  me  hath  everlast- 
ing life,  and  shall  not  come  into  condemnation,  but  is 
passed  from  death  unto  life.  Now  if  you  want  anything 
stronger  than  that  to  give  you  perfect  satisfaction,  that 
he  has  delivered  your  soul  from  death,  I  do  not  know 
where  you  will  find  it.  So  if  you  want  to  ask  to-day 
what  benefits  God  has  bestowed  upon  you,  the  answer  is 
here,  and  it  is  in  your  heart  and  in  your  life.  He  has 
delivered  my  soul  from  death. 

Now  turn  with  me  to  the  other  side.  What  shall  I 
render  unto  the  Lord  for  all  his  benefits  towardmef  I 
will  walk  before  the  Lord  in  the  land  of  the  tiring.  That  is 
the  first  thing  I  will  do.  I  will  walk  ;  I  will  make 
progress;  I  am  not  going  to  be  any  dead  Christian.  I 
shall  be  no  stumbling-block  in  the  way  of  othei«s  who 
are  hurrying  along  the  great  highway  toward  heaven. 
I  will  walk.  I  shall  try  t.»  be  better  to-morrow  than  I 
am  to-day,  and  better  the  day  after  than  I  hope  to  be 


SERMON'S.  121 

to-morrow.     It  is  true  in  the  Christian  life,  as  it  is  true 
in  our  every  day  life  : 

Not  enjoyment  and  not  sorrow 

Is  our  destined  end  alway  ; 
But  to  act  that  each  to-morrow 

Find  us  farther  than  to-day. 

I  will  walk.  Old  Rowland  Hill  saw  a  child  riding  a 
hobby  horse  one  day,  aud  said  :  "  That  is  like  some 
Christians :  considerable  motion,  but  no  progress."  I 
will  walk  before  the  Lord.  Have  you  not  seen  a  mother 
start  her  little  child  out  walking  its  first  few  tottering 
steps,  and  she  right  behind  it  holding  a  hand  on  each 
side  of  the  child  and  watching  which  way  it  walked  as 
she  followed  along  ?  That  is  what  this  means.  I  will 
walk  before  the  Lord  ;  God  at  my  back  ;  God's  hand  on 
my  right  and  on  my  left,  and  his  eye  guiding  my  foot- 
steps, and  I  will  try  to  remember  that  his  eye  is  not  only 
on  the  way  that  I  walk  but  on  me.  I  will  walk  before 
the  Lord  in  the  land  of  the  living;  I  used  to  be  in  the 
land  of  the  dying  and  the  dead.  I  was  once  in  the  land 
where  hope  had  died  in  the  heart,  and  where  the  soul 
was  buried  in  trespasses  and  sins,  among  the  dead  and 
the  lost.  But  I  am  living  now  among  the  living,  and  I 
shall  walk  forever.  God  is  not  the  God  of  the  dead, 
but  of  the  living.  He  that  liveth  and  believeth  in  me 
shall  never  die.  Let  us  walk  on.  This  mighty  moving 
army  is  pressing  on  toward  the  better  laud. 

Then  let  our  nongs  ahound, 
And  every  tear  be  dry  ; 


122  PULPIT,    PEW   AND    PLATFORM. 

We're  marching  through  Immanuel's  ground, 
To  fairer  worlds  on  high. 

But  there  is  another  thing  that  I  will  clo  for  the  Lord. 
I  will  pay  my  vows  unto  the  Lord.  When  you  and  I 
became  Christians,  we  promised  that  we  would  try  to 
live  a  better  life,  that  we  would  endeavor  to  do  better 
than  we  had  ever  done,  and  that  our  daily  life  should 
show  forth  the  fact  that  we  had  been  with  Jesus  and 
had  learued  of  him.  These  vows  we  have  not  paid  as 
we  might  have  done.  Let  us  mend  our  ways  and  from 
this  good  hour  endeavor  to  perform  our  vows.  We 
promised  to  turn  away  from  sin.  "We  said  that  we 
would  commit  our  ways  unto  the  Lord,  that  his  word 
should  be  a  lamp  to  our  feet  and  the  light  to  our  path ; 
that  we  would  attend  to  the  duties  of  our  Christian  life. 
And  I  am  sure  J  speak  the  experience  not  only  of  my- 
self, but  of  every  one  present,  when  I  say  these  vows 
have  not  been  fully  kept.  And  when  my  heart  turns 
in  gratitude  to  God,  and  the  question  arises,  what  can  I 
do  for  him  who  has  done  so  much  for  me?  I  will  look 
back  to  the  vows  I  have  made  and  endeavor  to  keep 
them  hereafter  better  than  I  have  in  the  days  gone  by. 
I  will  pay  my  vows  unto  the  Lord  in  the  presence  of  all 
his  people.  Not  alone  in  my  secret  life,  but  among  my 
fellow-(  Christians.  Let  me  endeavor  so  to  live  that  they 
will  see  my  good  works  and  glorify  my  Father  in 
heaven.  Let  me  not  be  a  weight  to  my  brethren; 
rather  let  me  be  wings  of  helpfulness  in  the  progress  of 
our  eause. 


SERMONS.  123 

And  then  lie  adds  in  the  midst  of  that :  Oh  Jerusa- 
lem !  I  will  go  out  into  the  city  unto  my  place  of  busi- 
ness and  among  the  men  with  whom  I  come  in  contact, 
and  show  to  them  that  my  religion  is  a  reality,  and  not 
a  mere  garment  that  I  wear  on  Sunday  and  leave  at 
home  during  the  week ;  but  that  it  is  the  flesh  and  blood 
and  bone  and  nerve  and  soul  of  my  daily  existence. 
Last  and  best  of  all,  I  will  take  the  cup  of  salvation  and 
call  upon  the  name  of  the  Lord.  I  will  take  the  cup 
and  drink  of  it  myself.  It  is  a  mistake  for  us  to  think 
that  the  past  supplies  of  grace  will  be  sufficient  for  us 
to-day.  We  must  drink  of  the  cup  of  salvation  day  by 
day  if  we  would  live  the  Christian  life  in  its  best  and 
highest  sense.  There  are  some  who  never  seem  to  be 
happy  except  in  a  revival.  A  pastor  pointed  out  some 
members  to  me  not  long  ago  during  a  meeting  I  was 
holding-  for  him,  and  said:  "  You  never  see  those  mem- 
bers  here  except  in  time  of  revival.  They  are  like 
alarm  clocks:  you  wind  them  up  and  they  stay  wound 
up  till  the  protracted  meeting  comes  around,  and  then 
they  go  off  with  an  awful  noise  and  wake  up  things 
generally  around  them,  and  they  are  as  quiet  as  death 
itself  till  the  next  big  meeting  comes. 

I  will  take  the  cup  of  salvation.  I  will  drink  of  it. 
His  grace,  his  Spirit,  the  fellowship  of  his  people  work- 
ing in  his  cause  by  prayer,  by  supplication,  by  self-ex- 
amination, by  every  way  ;  God  helping  me  I  will  be  re- 
freshed and  strengthened  in  the  Lord.  I  used  to  visit 
a  home  in   my  pastorate  where  they  had  a  very  pretty 


124  PULPIT,    TEW   AND   PLATFOEM. 

picture  on  the  wall,  of  a  little  boy,  just  out  of  a  harvest 
field,  standing  at  a  well,  bending  over  an  overflowing 
bucket  of  water,  his   mouth  about  two  inches  from  the 
water.     Every  time  I  would  go  to  that  house  there  the 
little   fellow    would  be,    holding   his   mouth  over  that 
bucket  of  water.     I  felt  like  I  wanted  to  go  up  to  him, 
put  my  hand  on  the  back  of  his  head  and  press  it  down 
and  say,  "  Drink,  little  boy,  drink."     There  are  some 
Christians  like  that.     They  are  just  bending  right  over 
the   fresh  life-giving  fountain   all  the   time,   and    yet 
they  are  as  dry  as  a  bone.     Why  don't  they  drink?     / 
wiU  take  the  cup  of  salvation.     Not  only  will  I  take  it 
myself,  but  I  will  hand  it  around  to  others.     And,  my 
dear  friends,  common  politeness  would  require  you  and 
me  to  pass  the  cup  around,  offer  this  salvation  to  every 
one  within  our  reach.     Mother,  have  you  ever  pressed 
this  cup  to  the  lips  of  your  precious  child?     Friend, 
have  you  ever  gone  to  yonder  wayward,  weary  pilgrim, 
as  he  goes  along  the  road  to  his  own  ruin,  and  have  you 
asked  him  to  stop  and  drink  of  the  water  of  life?    Here 
is  work  for  every  one  to  do.     During  the  war  in  the 
battles  around  Fredericksburg,  Va.,  the  two  armies  had 
come  together  with  a  mighty  crash,  and  after  a  brief 
death-struggle,  had  fallen  back  only  a  few  paces  behind 
hastily  erected   breastworks.     Men    from  both    armies, 
wounded  and  dying,  were  there  in  the  hot  sun  between 
the  lines.     A  sergeant  in  Colonel  Kershaw's  regiment, 
afterwards  General  Kershaw  of  South  Carolina,  turning 
to  him  said  :    "  Colonel,  don't  you  hear  those  men  over 


SERMONS.  125 

there  crying  for  water  ?  I  have  some  in  my  canteen ; 
let  me  go  over  there  and  give  it  to  them."  He  said  : 
"  Why,  man,  if  you  were  to  show  your  headabovetlio.se 
breastworks,  you  would  be  killed  in  an  instant."  The 
gallant  fellow  lay  there  a  while  longer,  and  said  again  : 
"  Colonel,  I  cannot  stand  this.  Let  me  go  over  there 
and  give  them  some  water."  "  Well,  said  the  colonel, 
"  if  you  want  to  risk  you  life,  I  will  not  stop  you." 
Crawling  down  behind  the  breastworks,  he  got  four  or 
five  other  canteens  that  had  water  in  them,  and  then 
suddenly  standing  a  dozen  bullets  whistled  by  him  in 
an  instant,  but  the  bullet  had  not  been  made  to  strike 
him.  He  stepped  over  the  breastworks,  and  the  first 
man  he  came  to,  no  matter  whether  he  had  on  a  blue 
suit  or  a  gray,  he  bent  over  and  took  his  head  in  his 
hand,  put  the  canteen  to  his  lips,  and  said,  "  Here,  take 
a  swallow  of  this  water."  The  Federal  soldiers  dis- 
covered at  once  what  the  man  was  doing,  and  rose  up 
all  along  the  line,  and  so  did  the  boys  in  gray  at  the 
samp  time,  and  waved  their  hats  and  shouted,  "  Hurrah 
for  the  man  who  risks  his  life  to  give  a  dying  soldier 
water  !"  Over  yonder  battlements  of  heaven  to-day  the 
angels  are  bending,  and  with  exulting  shouts  of  triumph 
they  look  upon  the  noble  men  and  women  of  the  earth 
who  have  taken  the  cup  of  salvation,  and,  with  eager- 
ness and  zeal,  are  pressing  it  to  the  lips  of  their  perish- 
ing fellow-mortals. 

Are  you  asking  to-day,  "What  shall  I  render  unto 
the  Lord  for  all  his  benefits  toward  me?"     Is  your  own 


126  PULPIT,   PEW   AJND    PLATFORM. 

heart  crying  out,  that  it  may  in  some  way  express  its 
gratitude  to  God?  Go,  my  friends,  and  rescue  the  per- 
ishing. Go,  and  he  good  to  those  who  are  not  good  to 
themselves.  Remember  the  patience  and  mercy  of  him 
who  helped  you  when  you  wire  low.  Let  him  send 
you  forth  to  be  a  blessing  to  the  world,  and  the  day  will 
come  when  you  will  hear  from  his  own  lips  :  "  Inasmuch 
as  you  did  it  for  these,  you  did  it  for  me." 

THE  JOYFUL   SOUND. 

I    INVITE   your    prayerful    attention   to  the  words 
found    in   the   15th    verse  of  the  89th   Psalm  : 
"  Blessed  is  the  people  that  know  the  joyful  sound." 

An  old  writer  on  the  Psalms  has  said  that  when  you 
find  the  word  blessed  hanging  out  as  a  sign,  you  may 
know  that  a  good  man  dwells  within.  The  word 
blessed  hangs  out  as  a  sign  at  the  door  of  this  text,  and 
a  godly  people  is  the  people  described  within.  There 
is  a  great  difference  in  the  world's  idea  of  blessedness 
and  God's  idea  of  what  it  is  to  be  blessed.  The  world 
says,  blessed  is  the  man  who  succeeds  in  business,  who 
has  a  plenty  of  money  and  is  surrounded  by  all  that  the 
world  can  give  him.  Blessed  is  the  man  who  holds  po- 
sition and  office  of  influence.  Blessed  is  the  woman 
who  can  have  her  heart's  desire  of  all  the  things  on 
earth.  That  is  what  the  world  says.  God  says: 
"Blessed  is  the  people  that  know  the  joyful  sound."  I 
cannot  decide  this  matter  for  you  ;  but  for  me,  I  would 


SERMONS.  127 

rather  be  what  the  Lord  calls  blessed  than  what  the 
world  calls  blessed.  If  we  can  find  out  what  is  meant 
by  the  joyful  sound,  we  shall  enter  into  the  true  mean- 
ing of  this  word  blessed.  There  are  some  truths  in  the 
Bible  that  lie  upon  the  surface  like  apples  on  the 
ground  in  autumn ;  you  have  only  to  go  and  gather 
them  up  and  enjoy  them.  Other  truths  are  like  gold — 
down  beneath  the  surface — and  you  must  dig  for  them 
iu  order  to  get  them.  So  it  is  here,  though  the  truth  is 
not  far  beneath  the  surface.  You  who  have  read  the 
Old  Testament  with  any  sort  of  care  and  attention  have 
discovered  that  there  are  many  things  that  point  to 
other  things  in  the  New  Testament,  like  shadows  of  a 
substance.  For  example,  everybody  knows  that  the 
lamb  of  the  Old  Testament  used  as  a  sacrifice,  whose 
blood  was  sprinkled  upon  the  door-post  of  the  homes 
of  God's  people,  was  only  a  type  of  the  Lamb  of  God, 
Jesus  Christ,  in  the  New  Testament.  Now,  this  joyful 
sound  in  the  Old  Testament  means  the  sound  of  trum- 
pets that  issued  in  the  year  of  jubilee.  Every  fiftieth 
year  was  called  the  year  of  jubilee.  In  that  year  peo- 
ple had  rest;  the  land  had  rest;  the  beasts  of  the  field 
had  rest.  Not  a  plow  was  plunged  into  the  bosom  of 
the  earth  during  the  year  of  jubilee.  It  was  a  time  of 
rest.  I  think  it  would  be  a  good  thing  if,  in  this  busy, 
pressing,  eager  age,  men  and  women  could  stop  awhile 
and  rest.  You  men  of  business,  how  glad  you  would 
be  for  a  year  of  rest !  You  tired  wives  and  mothers, 
how  sweet  real  rest  would  be  to  you  !     Who  of  us  does 


128  PULPIT,    PEW   AND    PLATFORM. 

not   sympathize    with    poor    Father   Ryan,    when    he 

wrote : — 

"  My  feet  are  wearied  and  my  hands  are  tired — 
My  soul  oppressed — 
And  with  desire  have  I  long  desired 
Rest — only  rest." 

Another  thing  that  was  true  of  the  year  of  jubilee  : 
all  debts  were  liquidated  in  that  year.  It  was  a  sort  of 
general  bankrupt  law.  If  a  man  owed  a  debt  it  was 
canceled  and  he  could  turn  over  a  new  leaf  and  start 
fresh.  The  year  of  jubilee  also  brought  liberty  to  the 
captives.  Those  who  had  been  sold  for  slavery  or  im- 
prisoned for  debt  and  what  not  were  allowed  their  free- 
dom in  the  year  of  jubilee,  and  were  given  another 
chance  to  make  life  a  success.  They  would  open  the 
doors  of  the  prison  and  say:  "  Now  go  and  try  again  to 
be  a  better  man  and  woman  than  you  have  ever  been 
before."  So  you  see  the  year  of  jubilee  was  a  glad  year 
to  the  people  of  Israel.  It  was  announced  by  the  blow- 
ing of  trumpets,  and  when  the  people  heard  the  sound 
of  the  trumpets  which  told  them  that  the  year  of  jubilee 
had  come,  it  was  a  joyful  sound. 

Now  what  does  this  mean  in  the  New  Testament? 
Let  Jesus  himself  answer.  Sitting  in  the  Synagogue  in 
Nazareth  they  gave  him  the  Scriptures  and  he  read 
tlcse  words:  "The  spirit  of  the  Lord  is  upon  me,  be- 
cause  he  hath  anointed  me  to  preach  the  gospel  to  the 
poor;  he  hath  sent  me  to  heal  the  broken-hearted,  to 
preach    deliverance   to   the   captives,   and    recovering 


SEtttioxs.  129 

Bight  to  the  blind,  and  set  at  liberty  them  that  are 
bruised,  to  preach  the  acceptable  year  of  the  Lord." 
The  acceptable  year  of  the  Lord  and  the  year  of  jubilee 
meant  the  same  thing.  So  we  are  taught  by  our  Saviour 
that  he  came  to  declare  a  spiritual  jubilee  and  the  gospel 
is  the  joyful  sound  that  announces  it  everywhere.  I 
have  said  that  in  the  year  of  jubilee  people  had  rest. 
Is  there  anything  like  spiritual  rest  ?  There  is  nothing 
on  earth  we  so  earnestly  desire  as  rest  for  our  souls. 
AVe  want  some  place — some  promise  where  we  may  feel 
that  we  are  at  peace  with  God  and  are  resting  free  from 
care  and  anxiety  as  to  our  future. 

''  O  where  shall  rest  he  found — 
Rest  for  the  weary  soul  ? 
'Twere  vain  the  ocean  depths  to  sound, 
Or  pierce  to  either  pole." 

Now  what  the  soul  wants  is  just  this.     Rest.     The 
old  song  we  used  to  sing  long  years  ago  is  just  as  good 

now : 

"Yet,  save  a  tremhling  sinner,  Lord, 
"Whose  hope,  still  hov'ring  round  thy  word, 
Would  light  on  some  sweet  promise  there  — 
Some  sure  support  against  despair." 

Is  there  anything  like  rest  for  us?  There  stands 
one  who  says  to  you  and  to  any  and  to  all  of  the  world : 
"Come  unto  me,  I  will  give  you  rest."  To-day  you, 
Christian  people,  are  resting  in  Jesus  Christ.  You 
know  whom  you  have  believed  and  you  are  satisfied. 
9 


130  pulpit,  pew  and  platform. 

"  I  heard  the  voice  of  Jesus  say, 
'  Come  unto  me  and  rest ; 
Lay  down,  thou  weary  one,  lay  down 
Thy  head  upon  ray  breast.' 

I  came  to  Jesus  as  I  was — 

Weary,  and  worn  and  sad  ; 
I  found  in  him  a  resting-place, 

And  he  has  made  rae  glad." 

Yes,  there  is  rest  for  your  soul  upon  the  rock  of  ages 
and  nowhere  else.  I  tell  you  it  is  a  joyful  sound  when 
the  blessed  news  reaches  the  tempest-tossed  spirit — 
There  is  rest. 

Auother  thing  that  was  true  of  the  year  of  jubilee 
was  the  payment  of  debts.  All  debts  were  paid.  It  is 
a  sad  time  when  a  man  finds  himself  heels  over  head  in 
debt  and  cannot  pay  out.  He  looks  ahead  of  him  and 
feels  that  it  is  not  worth  while  for  him  to  work,  he  can 
never  pay  all  that  he  owes.  What  a  blessing  it  is  if 
some  friend  helps  him  !  I  was  sitting  at  a  table  in 
Lynchburg,  Virginia,  some  years  ago,  and  the  father  of 
the  gentleman  at  whose  house  I  was,  who  lived  just 
thirteen  miles  out  of  town,  had  come  in  to  spend  the 
dav.  As  we  sat  down  to  dinner  the  father  seemed 
troubled  and  declined  to  be  helped  to  any  dish  that  was 
offered  him.  His  younger  son  said  to  him  :  "Father, 
what  is  the  matter?  Are  you  sick."  "No,"  said  he, 
"I  am  not  sick,  but  I  am  greatly  troubled  to-day.  I 
have  a  note  due  in  bank  for  $300  and  I  can't  pay  it- 
I   did  not  know  it   was  due  to-day ;  if  I  had,  I  might 


SERMONS.  131 

have  made  some  arrangements  before  I  left  home,  but 
as  it  is,  it  must  go  to  protest  and  my  credit  is  gone." 
His  son  arose  from  the  table  and  went  out  on  the  street 
and  arranged  to  meet  the  note  by  getting  some  merchants 
to  advance  him  the  money  until  his  father  could  get 
home  and  see  to  it.  He  brought  the  note  back  and  laid  it 
down — stamped  paid  by  the  bank — and  his  father  looked 
up  and  said :  "  Why.  how  in  the  world  did  you  do 
this  ?  "  He  explained  it.  "  Well,"  said  the  father,  "I 
am  all  right;  you  have  saved  my  credit."  Then,  turn- 
ing to  his  older  son  he  said  :  "  You  may  help  me  now  to 
anything  and  everything  on  the  table.  My  appetite 
has  returned  all  at  once."  His  debt  was  paid.  His 
burden  was  off  of  his  heart.  So,  as  I  stand  a  bank- 
rupt before  God,  with  more  debts  against  me  than  I 
can  ever  pay,  I  am  in  despair.  I  am  about  to  give  up 
when  Jesus  comes  and  says:  "I  have  paid  it  all.  Your 
sins,  though  many,  are  all  forgiven.  Go  in  peace."  It 
is  a  joyful  sound  to  hear  such  words  from  one  who  has 
taken  my  place  and  made  peace  with  God  for  me. 

In  the  year  of  jubilee  captives  were  turned  loose.  Is 
there  anything  like  that  in  the  gospel.  All  of  us  know 
that  there  are  spiritual  prisoners  around  us  everywhere. 
Take  the  man  who  drinks.  He  is  the  slave  of  a  slave. 
He  is  a  prisoner  of  the  worst  of  tyrants.  It  seems  im- 
possible for  him  to  break  his  chains  or  to  escape  his 
doom ;  and  yet  Jesus  comes  and  sets  the  captive  free — 
makes  him  anew  man  and  a  free  man.  Gives  him  his 
liberty  forever.     I  could  mention  many  cases  to  you.    I 


132  PULPIT,    PEW   AND    PLATFORM. 

could  call  men  to  their  feet  in  this  audience  who  would 
willingly,  gladly  testify  that  when  they  were  unable  to 
help  themselves  the  Lord  helped  them  and  saved  them 
from  their  fearful  imprisonment  and  slavery.  What  is 
true  of  drink  is  true  of  every  sin.  lie  is  able  to  save 
unto  the  utmost  all  who  come  unto  God  by  him.  Now, 
my  friends,  when  this  good  old  gospel  comes  and  tells 
us  there  is  rest  for  our  souls,  there  is  settlement  for  our 
sins,  there  is  freedom  from  our  captivity,  it  is  a  joy  Ad 
sound  and  blessed  is  the  man  who  hears  it  and  heeds 
it. 

"Blessed  is  the  people  that  know  the  joyful  sound.'' 
We  must  know  it  and  not  b}r  our  heads,  but  by  our 
hearts.  The  gospel  must  touch  the  heart  if  it  would  be 
a  blessing.  You  may  take  the  most  illiterate  old  Chris- 
tian that  you  know  to-day  and  let  him  listen  to  one  of 
your  modern  moral  essays  or  new  theology  preacher's 
discourse  on  some  topic  that  he  has  found  in  some  of  his 
scientific  investigations  or  evolved  from  his  own  con- 
sciousness. Let  the  old  saint  listen  to  the  discourse 
through  and  through  and  then  go  and  say  to  him: 
Brother,  how  did  you  like  the  sermon?  He  will  tell 
you :  It  was  right  good,  I  reckon,  but  it  was  not  the  gos- 
pel. How  did  he  know  it  was  not  the  gospel?  He 
knew  it  by  his  heart,  not  by  his  head.  I  judge  of  a  ser- 
mon by  my  heart.  I  want  preaching  that  gets  down 
among  my  feelings  and  affections  where  I  live  and  stirs 
me  and  moves  me  to  be  a  better  man.  I  want  to  hear 
a  preacher's  heart  beat   in  his  sermon.     This  old  sound 


SERMONS.  133 

must  be  known  by  the  heart  or  it  will  be  known  to  no 
purpose.  I  think  when  we  get  to  heaven  we  shall  hear 
familiar  sounds.  When  the  "Well  done"  rings  out 
from  the  lips  of  our  joyful  King  we  shall  say,  "I  have 
heard  thai  before."  It  is  the  language  of  the  old  gos- 
pel that  I  believed  in  and  obeyed.  When  the  white 
people  first  settled  this  country  they  were  subject  to 
many  invasions  by  the  Indians.  On  one  occasion  the 
Indians  stole  several  little  children.  Some  years  after- 
wards a  little  girl,  who  had  grown  almost  to  be  a  woman, 
was  re-captured,  and  the  mothers  who  had  lost  their 
children  were  called  in  to  see  whose  child  it  was.  Each 
hoped  it  was  her  own,  but  could  not  tell  positively. 
Finally  one  of  them  commenced  to  sing  a  little  nursery 
rhyme  with  which  she  had  sung  her  child  to  sleep  in 
years  gone  by.  As  she  sang  it  the  young  lady  looked 
up  and  said:  "I  have  heard  that  song  somewhere." 
The  mother  ran  to  her  and  caught  her  in  her  arms  and 
said  :  "  You  are  my  own  precious  child.  You  heard 
that  song  in  my  arms."  So  it  will  be,  dear  friends,  in 
heaven;  we  shall  recognize  the  joyful  sound  in  the 
world  to  come  if  we  have  known  it  and  been  blessed  by 
it  here. 

"Blessed  is  the  people  that  know  the  joyful  sound." 
You  will  find  in  the  verses  following  what  this  blessed- 
ness means.  "  They  shall  walk,  0  Lord,  in  the  light  of 
thj/  countenance.'"  They  shall  walk.  It  will  be  a  mov- 
ing people.  They  look  upon  this  life  as  a  probation — a 
preface  to  the  book.     The  blossom  which  precedes  the 


134  PULPIT,    PEW   AND    PLATFORM. 

fruitage.     They    will    walk.     They    move   on ;    never 
standing  still,  but  ever  on  the  journey. 

"Here  in  the  body  pent 

Absent  from  him  J  roam; 
Yet  nightly  pitch  my  moving  tent, 
A  day"s  march  nearer  home." 

They  shall  walk  in  the  light.  Xot  in  the  dark.  "In 
the  litrht  of  thv  countenance.  Jesus  is  so  near  to  his 
disciples  that  his  face  lights  up  the  life  of  his  follower. 
I  was  talking  with  a  lady  not  long  ago  who  had  lost 
her  grown  daughter.  She  said  to  me:  "Mr.  Wharton, 
my  child  was  the  light  of  our  home."  Yes,  aud  in  such 
a  sense  as  this  Jesus  Christ  is  the  light  and  joy  of  our 
life. 

"  In  thy  name  shall  they  rejoice  all  the  day."  Herein 
is  the  difference  between  God's  people  and  other  people. 
You,  who  are  not  Christians  rejoice  in  your  own  name. 
If  we  speak  to  you  of  religion  you  are  ready  with  your 
answer:  "I  am  not  so  bad  as  some  others  I  know." 
Only  another  way  of  saying  that  your  trust  is  in  your 
own  goodness.  Our  trust  is  in  the  Lord.  In  his  name 
do  we  rejoice.  Ask  a  Christian  what  is  his  hope  of 
heaven  and  he  will  auswer :  "Jesus;"  and  this  will  be 
his  reply  if  you  wish  to  know  what  is  his  strength,  his 
wisdom,  his  sanctification,  his  redemption.  "  In  ihyright- 
eousness  shall  they  he  exalted"  Exalted  means  lifted 
up — higher  and  higher — better  and  better — as  the  days 
go  by.  In  the  strange  providence  of  God  it  is  possible 
for  a  Christian  to  be   lifted  up  by  being  let  down.     He 


SERMONS.  135 

can  rise  by  a  fall,  if  God,  in  mercy,  should  be  pleased  to 
overrule  the  works  of  the  devil.  If  you  have  committed 
your  ways  unto  the  Lord  and  are  trying  to  serve  him 
he  will  see  to  it  that  you  shall  be  exalted — exalted  in 
righteousness.  Upward  and  onward  is  the  Christian's 
career. 

Have  you  heard  the  joyful  sound  ?  Do  you  know 
it?  Then  let  others  know  the  blessed  news.  Put  the 
trumpet  to  your  lips  and  let  all  the  world  know  that 
Jesus  Christ  is  in  the  world  saving  sinners. 

"  Blow  ye  the  trumpet,  blow 

The  gladly  solemn  sound  ; 
Let  all  the  nations  know 

To  earth's  remotest  bound  ; 
The  year  of  Jubilee  has  come — 
Return,  ye  ransomed  sinners,  home." 

OUR  FATHER'S  GIFT. 

For  God  so  loved  the  world,  that  he  gave  his  only  begotten  son,  thai 
whosoever  bclievcth  in  him  should  not  perish,  but  have  everlasting  life. — 
John  Hi.  16. 

TWO  old  ladies  were  spending  the  evening  together — 
knitting  and  talking.  Religion  was  their  subject,  and 
their  own  experience  made  it  more  and  more  interest- 
ing, as  they  went  back  over  the  years  of  their  pilgrim- 
age. I  wish  all  of  us  would  talk  more  than  we  do 
about  our  own  experience  as  Christians.  It  would  do 
us  good  and  others  too.  In  the  midst  of  their  conver- 
sation one  said  to  the  other,  "  Suppose  all  the  Bible  had 


136  PULPIT,    PEW  AND   PLATFORM. 

to  be  destroyed,  and  you  could  just  take  out  one  verse, 
which  one  would  you  take."  The  old  lady  thought  a 
minute  and  said,  "  Well,  I  think  I  should  take  this 
one:  'For  God  so  loved  the  world,  that  he  gave  his 
only  begotten  Son,  that  whosoever  believeth  in  him 
should  not  perish,  Imt  have  everlasting  life.'  "  Here  is 
the  gospel  packed  into  one  verse. 

"  God  so  loved  the  world."  People  sometimes  say,  it 
is  wonderful  how  God  could  love  this  world.  I  do  not 
think  so.  I  would  be  surprised  if  lie  didn't  love  it. 
He  made  it;  it  is  His  own  ;  why  shouldn't  He  love  it  ? 
The  wonder  to  me  is  that  the  world  does  not  love  God. 
J  do  not  see  how  any  one  can  think  of  his  blessings  and 
in  ireies  and  goodness;  His  patience  and  forbearance  and 
not  love  Him.  "  God  go  loved  the  world."  I  wish  we 
could  get  an  idea  of  the  intensity  of  that  little  mono- 
syllable SO.  He  so  loved  the  world  that  He  gave  Mis 
Son.  One  of  the  greatest  mistakes  that  you  and  I  have 
made  was  when  we  thought  that  God  didn't  love  us, 
cvii)  while  we  were  yet  sinners.  He  loves  the  sinner. 
And  He  loves  him  so  much  that  He  is  willing  to  give 
his  Son  to  die  for  him.  Love  proves  itself  by  sacrifice. 
I  heard  sometime  ago  of  a  mother,  who  appeared  be- 
fore a  mission  board  with  her  son,  who  wanted  to  go 
away  and  preach  the  gospel  in  heathen  lands.  She  sat 
weeping  while  they  were  talking,  and  when  at  last  they 
turned  to  her  and  asked  her  if  she  was  willing  to  let 
hirago,  she  said  to  them,  "God  gave  His  Son  forme  and 
why  should  I  not  give  my  son  for  Him.     Go,  my  boy, 


SERMONS.  137 

and  if  mother  never  sees  you  any  more  in  this  world, 
she  will  meet  you  in  the  presence  of  Him  who  died  that 
we  might  live." 

Please  notice,  also,  that  He  gave  His  Sou.  He  didn't 
put  him  up  for  sale,  nor  did  lie  say  you  can  have  Him 
on  any  condition  except  as  a  free  gift.  He  did  not 
give  Him  because  He  saw  any  merit  in  you  and  me,  but 
because  He  loved  us  and  wanted  to  save  us.  Some  time 
ago  I  saw  a  Bible  that  belonged  to  a  young  man.  On 
the  fly-leaf  his  name  was  written  and  under  it  these 
words : 

"  Remember,  love,  who  gave  thee  this, 

When  other  days  shall  come, 
When  she  who  had  thine  earliest  kiss, 

Sleeps  in  her  narrow  home, 
Remember  'twas  a  mother  gave 
This  precious  book,  her  child  to  save." 

It  was  love  that  made  the  mother  give  her  boy  that 
book,  and  it  was  love  that  moved  the  heart  of  God  to 
give  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  to  die  for  you  and  me,  poor 
sinners  that  we  are! 

Let  us  direct  our  thoughts  a  little  while  to  the  gift  it- 
self. It  is  a  gift  which  once  possessed  can  never  be  lost. 
All  of  us  have  had  gifts  in  the  days  of  our  childhood 
and  along  through  life,  but  we  have  lost  them.  Here 
is  a  gift  vou  cannot  lose.  Our  Father  does  not  give  like 
an  Indian — give  to-day  and  take  back  to-morrow. 
"When  he  gives  Jesus  Christ,  He  gives  Him  forever.  He 
makes  an  everlasting  covenant,  and  when  he  puts  his 


138  PULPIT,    PEW   AND    PLATFORM. 

name  to  a  contract,  it  is  there  forever.  "He  that  hear- 
<  tli  my  words  and  believeth  on  him  that  sent  me,  hath 
everlasting  life,  and  shall  not  come  into  condemnation, 
luit  is  passed  from  death  unto  life."  Once  I  was  preach- 
ing a  sermon  and  said  that  if  a  man  gave  himself  to 
Christ,  he  was  his  forever,  and  could  never  be  lost.  A 
prominent  member  of  another  denomination  came  up 
afterwards  and  said,  "  Have  you  the  Scripture  for  that?  " 
I  quoted  the  verse  I  have  just  repeated  and  two  or  three 
others  of  like  character.  "  Well,  sir ;"  he  said,  "this 
shall  be  the  sheet-anchor  of  my  soul  hereafter."  I  tell 
you  it  is  a  precious  truth.  "  I  will  never  leave  thee, 
uor  forsake  thee."  Take  that  home  to  your  hearts,  ye 
trembling  saints,  and  never  forget  that  Jesus  Christ 
once  yours  is  yours  forever. 

Another  thing;  the  more  you  use  tJtis  gift  the  brighter 
■it  gets  and  the  better  you  like  it.  Others  will  wear  out, 
fade  away  or  you  get  so  accustomed  to  them  that  you 
want  something  new;  but  whoever  drinks  this  water  will 
never  thirst  for  any  other.  He  who  cats  this  bread  will 
want  no  other  food.  He  to  whom  God  hath  given  this 
gift  will  find  that  pleasures  increase  as  he  enjoys  its 
possession.  I  love  to  hear  the  old  saints  way  up  yon- 
der on  the  heights  speak  to  us,  who  have  not  gotten  so 
far  along  the  road  as  they,  and  tell  us  to  come  on ;  it 
gets  better  as  they  go.  I  find  that  those  who  have 
had  this  gift  fifty  years  think  more  of  it  than  those 
who  have  had  it  only  a  few.  My  own  experience 
brings  its  ready  endorsement.     The  more  I  know  of 


SERMONS.  139 

Jesus  the  better  I  love  Him  and  the  more  I  want  to 
know  of  Him. 

This  gift  brings  with  it  all  that  is  needful  for  our 
strength  and  encouragement  in  this  life.  Some  people 
wear  charms  about  their  necks  to  keep  away  evil  spirits, 
but  here  is  a  charm  that  you  wear,  not  around  your 
neck,  but  in  your  heart.  He  sits  enthroned  there  ;  your 
friend  and  your  king.  When  you  pray  you  need  not 
think  of  him  as  far  away  in  the  heavens;  think  of  him 
as  within  you,  listening  to  every  sigh  and  in  deepest 
sympathy  with  every  want  of  your  soul.  If  you  have 
this  gift,  it  will  admit  you  at  the  gates  of  heaven. 
There  is  only  one  pass-word  that  will  enable  you  to 
enter  the  City  of  our  God.  It  will  restore  to  you  all 
that  you  have  lost  and  present  you,  without  spot  od 
blemish,  to  the  Father,  who  loved  you  and  gave  his  Son 
to  save  your  soul. 

But,  who  may  have  this  gift  f  That  is  the  question. 
Well,  here  it  is,  whosoever  believeth ;  whosoever. 
That  is  the  word  that  enables  us  to  come.  I  have 
heard  of  an  old  shoemaker,  who  was  concerned  about 
his  soul.  He  could  not  read,  but  his  little  daughter, 
who  was  going  to  school,  would  read  for  him.  One 
day  as  she  was  slowly  spelling  her  way  through  some 
of  the  verses  in  this  chapter,  she  came  to  the  lGth 
verse  and  went  on  reading  the  short  sweet  words,  until 
she  came  to  that  word  "  whosoever."  Her  old  father 
sitting  upon  his  shoemaker's  bench,  shoe  across  his  lap, 
awl  in  one  hand,  hammer  in  the  other,  looking  over 


140  PULPIT,    PEW    AND    PLATFORM. 

his  spectacles  at  his  little  daughter  and  listening  with 
tearful  interest  as  she  read  along.  "  Papa,"  she  said, 
'*  here  is  a  word  I  can't  read."  "  Try  your  best,  daugh- 
ter, it  may  be  the  very  word  I  want,"  said  he.  But  she 
could  not  make  it  out.  "  Put  your  finger  on  it,"  he 
said,  ''and  hold  it  there  a  minute."  And  then  getting 
up  i'rom  his  bench  he  put  his  own  big  linger  on  that 
verse  and  walked  to  the  door.  The  first  man  that  passed 
he  stopped  him  and  said,  "  Stranger,  will  you  please  tell 
me  what  that  word  is.  '  The  man  said,  "  That  is  who- 
soever." "Ah,  thank  (Jod  "!  he  said,  "  that  is  the  word 
I  want.  I  can  come  now.  Jesus  is  mine  and  I  am 
saved."  Whosoever  believeth  in  him.  That  is  very 
simple;  a  child  may  comprehend  it.  The  Lord  made 
it  simple  so  that  the  simplest  mind  may  believe.  Woe 
betide  ye  proud  spirits  and  lofty  intellects,  who  pass  by 
this  plain  open  door  and  seek  to  climb  in  through  some 
other  way  ! 

But  what  if  we  do  not  believe?  The  answer  is  plain 
— we  perish.  Jesus  Christ  came  to  save  a  world  already 
lost.  It  is  only  a  question  of  time  when  every  unbe- 
liever— every  one  who  fails  to  accept  this  offered  gift — 
must  perish.  I  do  no  not  know  what  is  meant  by  that 
word  "  perish."  It  carries  with  it  some  awful  meaning, 
which  eternity  alone  will  reveal.  It  is  set  forth  here  as 
the  alternative  of  everlasting  life.  It  must  mean  some- 
thing like  everlasting  death.  Will  you  accept  the  gift 
and  live,  or  will  you  reject  it  and  die  ? 


SERMONS.  141 

FOLLOWING  CHRIST. 
"Lord,  I  will  follow  thee  whithersoever  thou  goest." — Luke  ix.  57. 

I  LIKE  the  way  that  text  reads.  It  has  the  ring  of  the 
true  metal.  It  sounds  like  consecration,  self-sacri- 
fice, true  courage.  The  circumstances  under  which  those 
words  were  spoken  are  of  the  deepest  interest.  Jesus  was 
traveling  toward  Jerusalem  and  seems  to  have  entered  a 
Samaritan  village  late  in  the  evening.  As  soon  as  they 
found  out  who  it  was,  they  refused  to  receive  him.  I 
can  imagine  John  and  James  going  around  to  different 
houses  and  saying:  "Jesus  is  in  the  village  and  wants 
to  stay  all  night."  The  answer  came  back  everywhere: 
"He  cannot  stay  here."  It  seems  very  cruel  to  us  that 
any  one  should  have  treated  him  in  that  way,  and,  yet, 
there  are  some  who  are  listening  to  me  now  doine:  the 
very  same  thing — you  will  not  receive  him  into  your 
hearts.  How  could  he  hope  to  be  received  into  your 
homes?  AVhen  they  shut  their  doors  against  him  John 
and  James  lost  their  temper.  They  sa'id  :  "Lord,  let 
us  call  down  fire  from  heaven  and  burn  them  up."  I 
have,  sometimes,  seen  preachers  lose  their  temper  under 
similar  circumstances.  They  have  offered  salvation  to 
those  who  are  in  their  congregation  and  when  no  one 
accepted  it,  they  showed  a  disposition  to  turn  upon  them 
and  rend  them.  Once  I  Mas  holding  a  meeting  for  a 
dearly  loved  and  venerable  pactor,  and  after  repeated 
invitations  several  nights,  no  one  responded  to  the  call. 
Suddenly  taking  the  floor,  about  the  close  of  the  meeting 


142  PULPIT,    PEW   AND    PLATFORM. 

one  evening,  he  poured  hot  shot  into  them  for  about  ten 
minutes  and  fairly  took  the  hide  off.  I  said  to  him  af- 
terwards, "  Doctor,  you  will  never  get  them  in  that  way." 
"  Well,"  he  said,  "  Wharton,  it  makes  me  mad  to  see 
men  refuse  my  Saviour,  when  he  is  offered  to  them  for 
their  salvation."  Jesus  turned  and  rebuked  his  disciples 
and  said  :  "Ye  know  not  what  manner  of  spirit  ye  are 
of.  The  Son  of  Man  is  not  come  to  destroy  men's  lives, 
but  to  save  them."     And  he  went  to  another  village. 

As  they  were  leaving,  a  man  came  up  to  him  in  the 
road  and  said,  "Lord,  I  will  follow  thee  whithersoever 
thou  goest."  I  reckon  John  went  up  to  him  and  put 
his  arm  around  him  and  said,  "Thank  God !  here  is  one 
who  is  willing  to  follow  the  Master."  I  tell  you  it  is  a 
glad  day  when  the  invitation  is  accepted  and  souls  are 
flocking  to  the  cross,  and  it  is  a  sad  day  when  the  invi- 
tation is  declined  and  nobody  comes.  I  fancy  there  was 
a  smile  upon  the  face  of  Jesus  himself,  though  he  rather 
discouraged  the  man  from  coming,  saying  he  hadn't 
whereto  lay  his  head.  And  yet,  He  tells  us  that  there 
is  joy  in  the  presence  of  the  angels  of  God  over  one  sin- 
ner that  repenteth.  I  want  you  to  look  at  this  man, 
study  his  character,  analyze  it  and  see  what  was  in  him 
that  brought  about  this  glorious  declaration.  Of  course 
the  Spirit  of  God  was  there  working  in  him  and  drawing 
him  to  Christ,  but  I  wish  to  look  at  the  man  himself, 
and  may  the  Spirit  teach  us  that  this  devoted  follower 
may  prove  a  blessing  to  our  lives  and  may  incline  some 
of  you  to  do  as  he  did — leave  all  and  follow  Christ. 


SERMONS.  143 

First  of  all  let  me  say,  lie  was  a  man  of  courage.  He 
had  to  face  public  opinion  and  that  is  a  hard  thing  to  do. 
In  all  that  village  he  was  the  only  one  willing  to  receive 
Christ.  It  is  an  easy  thing,  my  friend,  for  you  to  be  a 
Christian  in  these  times,  when  every  other  person  you 
meet  is  a  Christian  ;  but  when  you  have  to  brave  the  op- 
position of  the  whole  community  it  is  rather  hard.  It 
takes  courage  to  be  a  Christian  anywhere,  but  more 
under  circumstances  like  these  than  you  can  well  imag- 
ine. During  the  war  a  soldier  went  to  his  chaplain  and 
said  to  him,  "  Chaplain,  I  am  the  only  man  in  our  tent 
who  is  a  Christian,  and  every  night  when  I  kneel  down 
to  say  my  prayers  the  boys  make  fun  of  me  and  throw 
their  shoes  at  me,  and  bother  me  so  I  do  not  know  what 
to  do.  What  must  I  do  about  it?"  The  chaplain  told 
him  to  wait  until  he  got  under  his  blanket  at  night  and 
say  his  prayers  to  himself.  A  very  poor  piece  of  advice, 
I  think,  for  a  preacher  to  give.  A  few  days  afterwards 
he  met  the  soldier  and  asked  him  how  he  came  out. 
"Well,"  he  said,  "your  plan  didn't  work  at  all."  I 
waited  until  the  lights  were  out  and  tried  to  pray  under 
my  blanket.  The  boys  were  all  laughing  because  they 
thought  they  had  whipped  me  out.  I  lay  there  and 
thought  to  myself,  "  You  coward,  you  are  willing  to 
stand  up  on  the  battle-field  and  let  them  shoot  at  you 
because  you  love  your  country;  but  you  are  not  willing 
to  get  down  on  your  knees  and  pray  to  the  Lord  because 
you  are  afraid  somebody  will  disturb  you."  I  just 
threw  the  blanket  off  and  got  down  on  my  knees  and 


144  PULPIT,    PEW    AXD    PLATFORM. 

prayed  aloud  for  every  soldier  in  the  tent.  "Well,  how 
did  thai  do?"  inquired  the  chaplain.  "They  all  list- 
ened/' he  said,  'and  every  night,  now,  when  1  kneel 
down  to  pray  they  kneel  with  me  and  we  have  regular 
family  worship  there  together."  It  took  courage,  and 
the  man  had  it.  That  is  exactly  what  you  need,  my 
friend,  to  make  you  come  out  on  the  Lord's  side  and 
take  your  stand  for  Christ  as  you  ought  to  do. 

He  h<«l  the  will.  It  takes  will  power.  "Lord,  I 
WILL."  When  a  man  gets  to  the  point  in  life  when  lie 
can  say,  Lord,  I  will,  I  will,  he  is  a  saved  man.  Sur- 
render, that  is  salvation.  A  complete  surrender  to  the 
Lord  Jesus  Christ  is  to  obey  his  will  and  follow  where 
he  leads.  I  was  holding  a  meeting,  once,  in  a  southern 
city  and  the  whole  place  seemed  under  the  influence  and 
power  of  the  Holy  Ghost.  Men  and  women  were  seek- 
ing the  unconverted  and  bringing  them  to  church.  One 
day  a  man  said  to  me,  "  Have  you  been  to  see  old  Mr. 
E— ?"  I  told  him  I  did  not  know  him.  "Well,"  he 
said,  "  he  is  a  hard  old  sinner  80  odd  years  of  age,  who 
lives  here  and  will  soon  be  gone.  I  wish  you  would  go  and 
call  on  him."  I  mentioned  the  subject  to  the  pastor  of 
the  church.  He  said  to  me,  "  If  you  were  to  go  to  that 
old  man's  house  he  would  curse  you  off  of  the  place." 
"  Well,"  said  \,  "  if  you  will  go,  1  will."  So  we  agreed 
to  make  the  attempt.  The  next  day  we  drove  into  the 
yard  and  walked  up  on  the  porch,  rang  the  bell,  but  re- 
ceived no  answer.  I  walked  along  down  the  porch  and 
saw  him   through  the  window.     I  said  to  the  pastor, 


SERMONS.  145 

"Here  lie  is  in  here.  What  shall  we  do  about  it?  Let 
us  go  in."  And  in  we  went.  The  old  man  was  very 
deaf.  I  walked  right  up  to  his  side  before  he  knew  I 
was  in  the  room,  and  as  he  turned  his  face  toward  mine 
I  was  struck  with  its  remarkable  attractiveness.  His 
white  hair  curled  in  tight  ringlets  ou  his  head,  clean- 
shaven face,  large  expressive  eyes.  I  introduced  myself 
and  the  pastor.  He  politely  asked  us  to  take  seats, 
though  he  looked  as  if  he  had  an  elephant  on  his  hands. 
Ashe  was  from  Virginia,  1  commenced  at  once  to  talk  with 
him  about  the  Old  Dominion  and  secured  his  attention 
and  interest.  You  know  if  there  is  anything  that  a  man 
is  a  fool  about,  it  is  being  born  in  Virginia.  After  talk- 
ing some  time  I  concluded  to  say  something  to  him  about 
religion  and  take  what  followed,  no  matter  what  it  was. 
Said  I,  "Mr.  R — ,  I  lost  my  father  several  years  ago. 
If  I  were  with  him  to-day  I  would  make  a  request  of 
him  and  I  want  to  make  the  same  of  you."  He  looked 
at  me  thoughtfully  for  a  moment  and  said,  "Well,  sir, 
make  it."  Said  I,  "  I  want  to  pray  for  you,  Mr.  R — ." 
"Very  well,  sir,"  he  said.  I  knelt  at  his  side,  placed 
my  elbow  upon  his  knee  so  that  my  mouth  would  be 
close  to  his  ear  and  I  prayed  for  him.  When  I  arose 
from  my  knees  he  was  weeping  and  said,  "Oh  !  what  a 
sinner  I  have  been."  That  same  afternoon  as  we  en- 
tered the  church  for  the  four  o'clock  service,  walking  up 
the  aisle,  the  pastor  touched  my  arm  and  pointed  to  the 
front  seat.  There  sat  Mr.  R — ,  the  first  time  he  had 
been  in  church  for  more  than  fifty  years.  After  a  brief 
10 


146  PULPIT,    PEW   AND    PLATFORM. 

talk  1  called  on  any  who  were  there,  who  wished  to  con- 
fess Christ,  to  rise.  He  walked  with  a  very  long  staff' 
and  slowly  pulling  himself  up  he  turned  and  looked 
toward  the  audience  and  said,  "  My  friends,  I  want  you 
all  to  know  that  I  surrender  to  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ." 
Then,  putting  his  hand  in  mine,  he  said  in  the  hearing 
of  them  all,  "  Mr.  Wharton,  living  or  dying,  I  shall 
always  think  of  you  as  the  best  friend  I  ever  had." 
You  see  he  surrendered.  "  Lord,  /  will,  I  WILL,"  and 
when  you  come  to  that  you  are  saved. 

Furthermore,  He  believed  in  Christ.  He  called  him 
"Lord."  No  one  will  follow  Christ  who  does  not  be- 
lieve in  Him,  and  no  one  will  fail  to  follow  Him  who  does 
believe  in  Him.  The  best  evidence  of  your  faith  is  your 
willingness  to  follow.  Some  of  you  have  believed  in 
Him  for  many  years  and  are  willing  to  follow  Him,  but 
you  are  waiting  for  something  to  happen  that  will  never 
come.  You  want  some  strange  miracle  or  some  won- 
derful mental  earthquake.  But  what  is  the  use  of  it  if 
God  has  already  converted  your  soul.  If  you  believe 
in  Jesus  Christ  and  are  willing  to  forsake  your  sins  and 
become  His  follower,  the  thing  for  you  to  do  is  to  say, 
"Lord,  I  will  follow  Thee  whithersoever  Thou  goest," 
and  get  up  and  make  the  start  at  once.  Delay  is  dan- 
gerous. 1  believe  some  people  arc  converted  in  their 
childhood  and  do  not  make  a  profession  of  their  faith 
until  they  are  grown.  Some  years  ago  I  had  a  letter 
from  my  only  sister,  who  lived  at  that  time  in  Ken- 
tucky, saying  her  two  boys  were  just  grown,  and  she 


SERMONS.  147 

wanted  me  to  come  and  preach  in  the  village  where 
they  lived,  with  the  hope  that  her  sons  would  be  con- 
verted. Of  course,  I  went,  deeply  concerned  as  to  the 
result  of  the  meeting,  not  only  as  far  as  they  were  con- 
cerned, but,  as  usual,  for  all  who  are  in  attendance  upon 
the  services.  The  two  boys  were  very  unlike  in  dispo- 
sition. One  of  them  quick  and  impulsive,  and  the 
other  quiet  aud  gentle  as  a  girl  (some  girls).  The  first 
came  readily  and  declared  his  faith  in  Christ  and  his 
willingness  to  serve  Him.  The  other  remained  firm  and 
immovable,  though  he  seemed  terribly  anxious  about 
his  soul.  One  night,  before  going  to  church,  my  sister 
said  to  me,  "You  talk  with  John  to-night;  he  has  been 
good  all  his  life.  I  think  he  must  have  been  converted 
when  he  was  a  child.  As  we  went  along  up  the  road, 
in  the  dark,  I  said  to  him,  "John,  do  you  remember 
when  you  did  not  love  Jesus?"  "No,  sir,"  he  said. 
Can  you  recollect  the  day  when  you  were  not  willing  to 
serve  Him  and  to  follow  Him  ?"  "  No,  sir."  "Are  you 
willing  now  to  try  to  do  what  He  tells  you  to  do?" 
"Yes,  sir."  "Do  you  feel  like  you  want  to  live  a 
Christian  life  and  obey  His  will?"  "Yes,  sir." 
"Well,  you  come  out  to  night  when  I  give  the  invita- 
tion, and  confess  your  faith  in  Him."  That  night 
when  the  invitation  was  given  he  came,  with  tearful 
concern  and  firm  resolve.  And  from  that  time  he  h:is 
tried  to  live  an  humble,  godly  life.  Do  you  believe  in 
Jesus  Christ?  Are  you  willing  to  follow  Him?  That 
is  the  question.     Never  mind  when   the  belief  came. 


148  PULPIT,    PEW   AND    PLATFORM. 

Do  not  stop  to  inquire  when  you  got  the  blessing.  The 
great  question  is,  Have  you  got  it?  and  if  you  have, 
come  out  boldly  on  the  Lord's  side. 

Now,  let  us  look  ut  the  following :  "Lord,  I  will  fol- 
low Thee!"  The  very  first  step  he  took  was  a  public 
confession.  Don't  you  see  he  came  up  where  the  Lord 
was,  and  spoke  right  out  in  meeting,  "Lord,  I  will  fol- 
low Thee  withersoever  Thou  goest,"  And  I  suppose  he 
followed  Him  also  in  baptism.  If  you  are  going  to 
follow  Him,  you  must  go  into  the  water,  for  He  went 
in  there.  Then  he  followed  Him  into  the  wilderness. 
Jesus  sometimes  walked  in  the  wilderness,  and  we  need 
not  be  surprised  if  we  walk  there,  too.  We  all  get  in 
the  wilderness  sometimes,  brethren.  Wilderness  of 
temptations,  wilderness  of  trials;  and  it  gets  very  dark, 
and  our  hearts  become  very  heavy,  but  Jesus  is  with 
us  in  the  wilderness,  and  we  shall  follow  Him  out. 
The  devil  can't  keep  you  there  long.  God  grant  that 
when  we  do  get  out  we  may  come  as  He  did,  in  the 
power  of  the  Spirit,  Peter  was  in  the  wilderness  when 
he  heard  the  chicken  crow,  and  went  out  into  the  dark- 
ness to  weep  the  bitter  tears  of  remorse.  But  he  was 
out  of  the  wilderness  when  he  stood  yonder  at  Pente- 
cost, and  his  words,  like  red-hot  thunderbolts,  smote  the 
hearts  of  the  astonished  multitude.  And  then,  by  and 
by,  we  shall  follow  Him  to  the  grave.  He  went  to 
the  grave,  and  we  must  go  there,  too. 

"I  would  not  live  always — no,  welcome  the  tomb, 
Since  Jesus  was  laid  theie,  1  dread  not  its  gloom; 


SERMONS.  149 

There  6\veet  be  my  rest,  till  He  bid  me  arise, 
To  hail  tiiax  in  triumph  descending  the  skiea." 

Yes,  we  shall  follow  Hiui  out  of  the  grave,  and  I  have 
sometimes  thought  that  when  we  stand  upon  the  other 
side  of  the  grave  and  He  shall  point  to  the  little  crooked 
path  we  walked  while  here,  we  shall  see  then,  as  we 
cannot  now  see,  His  wisdom  in  all  our  afflictions,  tempt- 
ations, trials  and  sorrows.  We  shall  follow  Him  to 
heaven.  On  swift  wings  we  will  rise  with  Him  to  the 
mansions  of  the  blest,  and  then,  above  all  things,  we 
shall  rejoice  that  we  followed  Him  while  here  on  earth. 
Let  me  urge  you,  by  all  that  is  dear  to  you,  that  you  fol- 
low Him  at  once.  The  end  may  be  nearer  than  you 
suppose.  Begin  to-day ;  to-morrow  may  be  too  late. 
One  beautiful  moonlight  night  on  the  Hudson  River, 
the  engineer  heard  the  quick,  sharp  ring  of  the  pilot's 
bell.  He  stopped  his  engine  and  looked  out,  wondering 
why  he  had  been  stopped  in  the  middle  of  the  stream. 
The  night  was  lovelv  ;  the  river  calm  ;  the  moon  shin- 
ing  brightly.  He  gave  his  engine  in  charge  of  his  as- 
sistant and  went  up  to  the  pilot's  house  to  see  what  was 
the  matter.  There  stood  the  pilot  holding  to  the  wheel 
as  if  he  was  looking  out.  "Why  did  you  stop  me?" 
said  the  engineer.  In  a  low,  husky  voice  the  pilot  re- 
plied, "There  is  a  mist  upon  the  river,  and  I  cannot  see 
to  steer  the  boat.  We  had  better  anchor  until  the 
morning.  See  the  captain  and  tell  him  so."  The  en- 
gineer looked  into  the  face  of  the  man  and  saw  that 
death  was  there.     He  caught  the  pilot  in  his  arms  and 


150  PULPIT,    PEW    AND    PLATFORM. 

laid  him  down,  only  to  see  him  breathe  his  last.  Soon 
the  mist  will  gather  around  you  and  mej  soon  the  thick 
shadows  will  fall  across  our  path;  but  as  followers  of 
Jesus  there  is  nothing  to  fear.  "Though  I  walk 
through  the  valley  of  the  shadow  of  death  I  will  fear 
no  evil,  for  thou  art  with  me,  thy  rod  and  thy  staff, 
they  comfort  me." 


A  MOTHER'S  PRAYER. 

"VTOU  will  find  the  words  of  my  text  in  the  loth  chapter 
■*-    of  Matthew,  and  the  25th  verse:  "Lord,  help  me.'' 

It  is  a  very  short  prayer.  Three  monosyllables.  I 
reckon  that  you  have  noticed  in  reading  the  Bible  that 
some  of  the  prayers  that  went  straight  to  the  heart  of 
God  were  the  shortest.  The  prayer  that  Jesus  taught 
His  disciples  was  very  brief;  the  prayer  of  the  Publican, 
''God  be  merciful  to  me,  a  sinner,"  and  the  prayer  of 
David,  which  you  will  find  in  the  116th  Psalm,  made 
when  he  was  under  conviction  of  sin,  when  the  sor- 
rows of  death  compassed  him  and  the  pains  of  hell  had 
hold  of  him.  He  says  he  then  called  on  the  name  of  the 
Lord,  and  this  was  the  prayer:  "O  Lord,  I  beseech 
Thee,  deliver  my  soul."  So  in  this  case;  the  prayer  is 
short  and  simple.  In  the  time  of  intense  anxiety  we 
have  no  heart  for  many  words.  So  it  was  in  the  case  of 
this  mother. 

The  first  thing  that  presents  itself  to  our  eyes  here  is 
a  woman  in  trouble.     She  is  not  alone.     Many  have  gone 


SERMONS.  151 

before  her  and  many  will  eome  after  her.  I  have  heard 
it  said  that  a  woman  cannot  keep  a  secret.  She  is  the 
very  one  who  can  keep  a  secret.  We  men  cannot  keep 
a  secret,  especially  if  there  is  some  trouble  in  our  hearts. 
We  must  tell  it  to  some  one,  and  there  is  no  one  to  whom 
we  can  speak  of  it  with  greater  freedom  and  comfort  to 
ourselves  than  a  woman.  A  mother,  a  wife,  a  sister  is 
always  a  sympathizing  hearer  when  we  are  in  trouble. 
A  woman  can  keep  a  secret  in  her  heart  until  it  wears 
her  heart  out.  I  have  heard  of  a  lady  who  was  an 
active  church  member  and  devoted  worker  in  the  Sunday- 
School — first  and  foremost  in  all  new  enterprises  for  the 
good  of  her  church  or  the  glory  of  her  Master.  To  the 
surprise  of  all  who  knew  her,  she  relaxed  in  the  per- 
formance of  her  duties.  People  noticed  her,  when  she 
came  to  church,  that  she  was  growing  pale,  the  roses 
were  falling  from  her  cheeks,  and  the  light  was  fading 
from  her  eyes.  She  gave  up  her  Sunday-School  class, 
finally  ;  only  occasionally  came  to  church.  The  neigh- 
bors said,  "  What  is  the  matter,  Mrs.  B.?  There  must 
be  some  trouble  at  home — some  family  difficulty."  After 
a  while  she  ceased  to  come  to  church  altogether,  and 
then  it  was  not  long  until  a  little  note  tied  up  in  a  black 
ribbon  was  circulated  in  the  neighborhood,  which  said 
that  Mrs.  B.  was  dead.  Something  was  the  matter.  A 
cancer  had  been  eating  near  her  heart  and  she  would  not 
allow  her  husband  or  her  physician  to  say  anything 
about  it.  She  kept  her  secret  and  took  it  with  her  to 
the   grave.     So,  oftentimes,  mothers,  wives,  daughters 


]  52  PULPIT,    PEW   AND    PLATPORM, 

carry  in  their  hearts  some  secret  trouble  that  carries  them 

oil' at  last,  where  troubles  arc  no  more.  There  are  moth- 
ers listening  to  iue  now,  whose  hearts  are  break- 
ing over  their  wayward  boys.  I  tlo  not  blame  the  man 
who  went  to  his  son  early  our  morning,  as  he  lay  in  bed, 
having  com;'  in  the  night  before  from  a  drunken  spree, 
and  ordered  him  to  get  up.  He  held  a  gun  in  his  hand, 
and  bis  son  thought  he  was  going  to  shoot  him.  He 
felt  that  he  deserved  it.  "Get  up,  my  son,"  he  said. 
The  young  man  got  up  and  dressed,  and  then  bis  father 
said  to  him,  "Here  is  this  gun  ;  both  barrels  are  loaded  ; 
take  it."  "  What  do  you  want  me  to  do  with  it,  father?" 
said  the  boy,  seared  half  to  death.  "I  want  you  to  go 
down-stairs  with  it  and  kill  your  mother."  "Why, 
father,  what  are  you  talking  about!"  "My  son,  you 
are  killing  her  by  inches,  she  is  dying  day  by  day,  and  I 
can't  stand  it  any  longer  ;  kill  her,  and  let  me  take  her 
poor  body  and  put  it  uuder  the  ground,  out  of  your 
way." 

This  mother's  trouble  was  her  daughter.  She  was 
possessed  of  a  devil.  I  ean  imagine  the  mother  sitting 
and  looking  at  her  poor  child,  wondering  if  there  was 
not  some  remedy  on  earth.  I  do  not  know  how  this  af- 
fected the  child.  Sometimes  tin- devil  affects  people  one 
way  and  sometimes  another.  That  young  man  that  I 
have  just  been  talking  about  must  have  been  possessed 
of  the  devil,  or  he  would  not  have  gone  on  as  be  did. 
\.it  lone  ago  T  met  a  woman  who  was  in  search  of  ber 
runaway  daughter.     She  had  gone  away  from  her  moth- 


SERMONS.  153 

er's  roof,  and  was  living  in  disgrace  among  strangers. 
That  daughter  must  have  been  possessed  of  a  devil.  I 
do  not  know  just  how  it  affected  the  one  in  this  case,  but 
it  was  a  great  trouble,  we  know  that.  One  day  a  neigh- 
bor comes  in  and  says  to  the  mother,  "  Have  you  heard 
of  Jesus  ?  There  is  one  who  is  said  to  be  man  and  God, 
over  in  Judea,  who  can  give  sight  to  the  blind,  make 
the  lame  walk,  cast  out  devils  and  raise  the  dead.  Sup- 
pose you  go  and  see  him  about  your  daughter.  I  will 
stay  here  and  mind  her  till  you  get  back."  That  is  a 
good  thing  for  some  of  you  to  do,  sisters.  Go  to  some 
poor  woman,  who  has  four  or  five  children,  some  of  them 
so  small  that  they  couldn't  pull  each  other  out  of  the 
fire,  and  say  to  that  woman,  "  You  go  to  church  to-night ; 
I  will  stay  here  and  look  after  your  children."  It  would 
be  a  blessing  to  you  and  a  blessing  to  her.  Well,  the 
mother  started  out  to  look  for  Jesus.  I  can  see  her  as 
she  goes  across  the  fields,  through  the  wilderness,  on  her 
way  to  find  the  Lord.  If  you  could  have  met  her  as 
she  was  going,  she  would  have  inquired  of  you  if  you 
could  tell  her  where  she  might  find  Him.  Perhaps  it  is 
several  days  before  she  learns  His  whereabouts.  Away 
across  the  fields  she  sees  a  number  of  people  gathered  to- 
gether and  hastens  on  to  inquire  of  them.  As  she  gets 
nearer  she  sees  one  standing  in  the  midst  of  the  group, 
a  fair  and  pleasant  face,  an  earnest  look  of  sympathy. 
He  turns  first  to  one  and  then  to  another,  and  seems  to 
be  blessing  every  one  that  comes.  There  is  a  blind  man  : 
He  places  His  fingers  upon  his  eyes  and  the  happy  man 


15-1  PULPIT,    PEW    AND    PLATFORM. 

looks  up  for  the  first  time  into  the  face  of  his  benefactor. 
Now,  they  bring  the  lame  and  the  palsied  and  they  leap 
for  joy.  I  have  often  thought  if  I  were  an  artist  I 
should  like  to  paint  my  Saviour  amid  such  scenes.  .But 
the  mother's  heart  is  under  the  pressing  burden  of  her 
poor  lost  child.  She  asks  those  standing  on  the  out- 
skirts who  it  is,  and  the  answer  comes  in  a  low,  excited 
whisper:  "It  is  Jesus  of  Nazareth."  Immediately  she 
cries  out,  "Have  mercy  on  me,  O  Lord,  thou  Son  of 
David,  my  daughter  is  grievously  vexed  with  the  devil/' 
I  think  if  she  had  been  as  grievously  afflicted  with  dignity 
as  some  of  the  mothers  of  the  present  day,  she  would 
hardly  have  asked,  even  one  of  the  disciples,  who  it  was. 
Why,  ladies,  there  are  some  of  you  so  dreadfully  digni- 
fied that  you  would  not  so  much  as  stand  up  here  this 
morning  and  ask  prayers  for  your  wayward  children. 
Not  so  with  this  mother.  She  cries  for  mercy  and, 
strange  to  say,  the  Lord  answered  her  not  a  word.  Did 
you  ever  have  that  experience?  Have  you  not  gone 
sometimes  and  begged  for  his  blessing,  and  yet  it  has  not 
come?  Are  there  not  many  of  you  who  have  prayed 
these  years  for  the  conversion  of  your  husband  or  your 
son,  and  yet  he  has  not  answered  a  word?  Pray  on, 
mothers;  though  He  may  not  answer  a  word  at  first,  He 
hears  your  prayers  and  will  not  permit  you  to  be  disap- 
pointed. When  my  own  dear  mother  died  she  left  eight 
children,  I  the  youngest  of  the  eight.  Only  four  were 
Christians.  My  mother  was  a  good  woman — a  woman 
of  prayer  and  of  a  godly  life,  and  yet  she  was   not  per- 


SERMONS.  155 

mittcd  to  see  the  answer  of  her  prayer  while  she  lived  on 
earth.  To-day,  two  of  the  eight  are  with  her  in  heaven 
and  the  other  six  are  on  their  way.  Another  strange 
thing:  she  always  said  that  I  should  be  her  preacher. 
She  called  me  her  preacher  boy.  And  if,  to-day,  she  is 
permitted  to  look  down  on  this  world,  I  know  her  heart 
is  glad  that  God  has  fulfilled  her  every  wish  on  my  be- 
half. I  say  to  you,  mothers,  pray  on ;  the  answer  will 
come  by-and-by. 

It  seems  that  this  mother  cried  so,  that  the  disciples 
interceded  in  her  behalf.  They  said,  "Lord,  send  her 
away,  for  she  crieth  after  us."  He  replies  to  them  from 
their  own  standpoint :  "  I  am  not  come  but  to  the  lost 
sheep  of  the  house  of  Israel."  You  know  the  Jews 
thought  that  Christ  had  only  come  to  save  the  Jews, 
and  they  were  called  the  lost  sheep  of  the  house  of  Is- 
rael. I  suppose  some  of  the  disciples  said  to  the 
woman,  "You  had  just  as  well  go  away;  we  have 
asked  Him  to  bless  you,  but  He  has  only  come  to  bless 
the  Jews."  She  was  not  to  be  discouraged.  "Let  me 
get  in  where  He  is,"  she  cries,  and  pressing  her  way  to 
the  very  spot  where  the  Master  stood,  she  fell  at  His 
feet,  looked  up  into  His  face  and  cried,  "Lord,  help 
me!*'  What  a  prayer  !  Even  then  He  does  not  give 
her  what  she  wants.  He  still  speaks  as  if  He  would 
not  grant  her  petition.  "It  is  not  good,"  He  said,  "to 
take  the  children's  bread  and  give  it  to  the  dogs."  The 
Jews  were  called  children  and  the  Gentiles  dogs.  I 
suppose  if  that   had    been    one  of  you,   mothers,  you 


156  prr.prT,  pew  and  platform. 

would  have  said,  "  Well,  you  talk  about  this  Jesus 
being  good  ;  [  don't  believe  it.  He  calls  me  a  dog,  and 
I  won't  stand  it.  I  will  go  home."  Not  so;  she  said, 
''Truth,  Lord,  but  the  dogs  may  have  the  crumbs  that 
fall  from  the  children's  table.  Give  me  this  crumb  ;  it 
will  not  hurt  the  children;  they  will  not  miss  it;  and 
oh!  it  will  be  such  a  blessing  to  me.  Lord,  save  my 
daughter.  Lord,  help  me!"  The  victory  was  hers. 
The  blessed  Master  looked  into  that  earnest,  upturned 
face,  and  into  the  depths  of  that  anxious  soul,  and  said 
to  her,  "O,  woman,  great  is  thy  faith  ;  be  it  unto  thee 
even  as  thou  wilt."  I  say  it  with  reverence,  but  it  does 
seem  to  me  that  the  mother's  prayer  had  brought  Jesus 
down  at  her  feet,  as  He  said  to  her,  "Tell  me  what  you 
want  me  to  do  and  I  will  do  it.  Be  it  unto  thee  even 
as  thou  wilt." 

I  wish  we  could  have  seen  that  woman  as  she  went 
along  back  home.  What  joy !  What  perfect  happiness 
was  written  on  her  face!  1  wonder  if  she  didn't  shout, 
once  in  a  while,  out  of  the  abundance  of  her  glad  heart. 
I  do  not  blame  you,  mothers,  lor  weeping  over  the  way- 
wardness of  your  children,  nor  for  rejoicing  over  their 
conversion.  Whatever  else  your  daughter  may  be,  if 
she  is  not  a  Christian  she  is  nothing.  You  will  notice 
that  this  mother  did  not  try,  in  the  least,  to  smooth  mat- 
ters over.  When  she  went  to  Jesus  she  didn't  say, 
"  Lord,  I  have  a  nice  daughter  at  home;  she  is  the  pride 
of  my  hear!  and  the  joy  of  the  neighborhood;  every- 
body admires  her.     It  is  true,  she  is  possessed  of  a 


SERMONS.  157 

devil;  but  that  isn't  much."  She  went  right  straight 
to  the  heart  of  the  matter.  She  said,  "Lord,  have 
mercy  on  me.  My  daughter  has  a  devil  in  her,  and  I 
want  him  cast  out."  I  have  heard  mothers  say,  "My 
daughter  is  a  sweet  child.  She  is  just  lovely.  It  is 
true,  she  is  not  a  Christian,  but  she  is  everything  else." 
My  friends,  your  daughter  will  never  be  a  blessing  to 
you  or  to  the  world  until  her  soul  is  saved.  And  now 
the  mother  reaches  home,  and  as  she  goes  in,  her  daugh- 
ter looks  up  and  says,  "O,  mother,  mother !  What  has 
happened  since  you  left?  Mother,  I  love  you  so,  and 
I  love  everybody.  Oh,  mother,  I  am  so  happy  I  feel 
like  I  want  to  lead  auother  kind  of  life  ;  that  all  my 
life  up  to  this  time  has  been  wasted.  Tell  me,  mother, 
what  is  the  matter?"  "Why,  my  precious  child,  you 
are  converted  ;  that's  what  brings  you  so  much  happi- 
ness to-day."  Jesus  had  heard  the  mother's  prayer  and 
saved  her  child. 


THE  UNSEARCHABLE  RICHES. 

Unto  me,  ivho  am  less  thin  the  least  of  all  saints,  is  this  grace  given, 
that  I  should  preach  among  the  Gentiles  the  unsearchable  riches  of  Christ. 
— Ephesians  iii.  8. 

rPHOSE  of  you  who  have  been  to  Washington  City 
-*-  have  noticed  upon  the  side  of  the  street-cars  and 
other  conveyances  the  names  of  the  places  to  which  they 
run.  On  one  you  will  see  "To  the  Capitol,"  another, 
"  The  Patent  Office  "  or  "  Post  Office  Department,"  on 


158  PULPIT,    PEW   AND   PLATFORM. 

another,  "The  Treasury."  And  if  you  will  get  in,  and 
go  in  the  right  direction,  it  will  take  you  to  the  place 
named.  It  seems  to  me  I  can  read  upon  this  text,  "  To 
the  Treasury,"  and  if  we  get  into  it  (and  may  the  Lord 
help  us  into  it),  and  stay  iu  it,  we  shall  explore  some  of 
the  riches  of  Christ,  to  which  we  are  heirs  forever. 

But  before  we  enter  this  great  Treasure  House  there  are 
several  things  on  the  outside  worthy  of  our  observation. 
Let  us  stand  awhile  on  the  porch  and  contemplate  them. 
And  first  of  all,  I  would  call  your  attention  to  the  hu- 
mility of  the  Apo-sth  Paul.  If  there  ever  lived  a  soldier 
of  the  cross  who  could  lift  his  head  in  pride  and  boast  a 
little  over  his  honorable  wounds  and  glorious  conquests, 
surely  it  was  this  wonderful  man,  and  yet  listen  how 
he  talks,  "  Unto  me,  who  am  less  than  the  least."  I 
didn't  know  there  could  be  anything  less  than  the  least, 
but  in  his  own  estimation  he  was.  What  an  intense  ex- 
pression !  Less  than  the  least.  Well  that  is  the  way  he 
ought  to  have  felt.  I  suppose  every  Christian  here  feels 
the  same  way.  If  you  don't  you  are  not  right.  Hu- 
mility !  It  is  one  of  the  Christian  graces.  God  loves 
to  see  it  in  his  children.  We  admire  it  everywhere. 
Why,  ladies,  you  like  it  among  the  flowers.  Who  does 
not  prefer  the  little  lily  of  the  valley,  which  hides  its 
modest  head  away  in  the  grass,  to  the  sunflower  that 
lifts  its  brazen  face  high  in  the  air  mid  says,  "  Look  at 
me,  ain't  I  pretty?"      It  is  so  among  the  birds. 

"The bird  tint  soars  on  lushest  wing, 
Builds  on  the  earth  her  lowly  nest; 


SERMONS.  159 

And  she  that  doth  most  sweetly  sing, 

Sings  in  the  nig.it,  when  all  things  rest; 
Jn  lark  and  nightingale  we  see, 
What  honor  hath  humility." 

Let  not  the  devil  turn  this  beautiful  grace  into  a 
temptation  and  make  it  a  snare  to  your  feet.  Some  of 
you  wish  to  follow  Christ,  but  you  say  you  are  not  good 
enough.  What  does  that  mean?  Why  simply  this: 
You  do  not  feel  humble  and  unworthy,  and  your  hu- 
mility has  been  made  a  stumbling-block  in  your  path. 
Of  course  you  are  not  good  enough  ;  who  is  ?  Come 
along  and  let  Christ  make  you  good.  Listen  no  longer 
to  the  tempter.  If  you  feel  weak  and  sinful,  you  are 
the  very  one  who  needs  a  Saviour  and  he  is  ready  to 
receive  you.  The  devil  tries  the  same  trick  on  the 
Christian.  You  are  weak  and  humble,  less  than  the 
least,  and  he  persuades  you  that  you  are  not  a  Christian 
at  all.  He  robs  you  of  your  joy,  destroys  your  useful- 
ness aud  makes  you  miserable.  Now,  hear  what  Paul 
has  to  say  on  this  subject,  "  I  am  less  than  the  least  of 
all  saints.  Less  than  the  least,  but  I  am  one  of  them. 
When  you  call  the  roll  of  soldiers  of  the  cross  do  not 
leave  me  out.  AVhen  you  mention  the  names  of  the 
children  of  God  count  me  in."  There  is  no  presump- 
tion in  saying  that  we  are  Christians.  We  do  not  say 
it  upon  our  own  merits,  but  upon  the  merit  of  our  Lord 
and  Redeemer. 

He  speaks,  also,  of  his  call  to  preach  the  gospel;  and 
of  all  the  callings  en  earth,  the  highest  and  the  greatest 


1G0  PULPIT,    PEW    AND   PLATFORM. 

that  God  ever  gave  to  mortal  man  is  to  preach  the  un- 
searchable riches  of  Christ.  I  have  heard  it  said,  that 
when  a  man  lias  a  son  that  he  cannot  do  anything  else 
with,  lie  makes  him  a  preacher  of  the  gospel.  Some- 
body  said  that  to  Whitefield  once,  mid  he  replied:  "  Well, 
God  had  only  one  Son  and  he  made  a  preacher  of  him." 
Young  men,  as  you  look  out  on  your  life  work,  pause 
awhile  and  ask  the  Lord  if  he  wants  you  to  preach  the 
gospel  of  the  Son  of  God.  There  is  no  work  that  will 
bring  to  you  so  much  of  happiness  and  usefulness  as  the 
work  of  the  messengers  who  go  forth  in  the  name  of  the 
King  of  kings. 

Furthermore,  he  was  not  at  a  loss  to  knoio  what  his 
theme  would  be.  Some  preachers  get  up  some  very  sen- 
sational themes.  They  search  the  newspapers  to  find 
some  strange  topic  in  order  to  attract  people.  A  gentle- 
man told  me  the  other  day  that  he  heard  a  prominent 
preacher  of  New  York  take  for  his  text  these  words: 
"I  have  played  the  fool."  And  he  said  that  the  man 
hadn't  gotten  half  through  his  sermon  before  he  con- 
cluded that  he  was  about  right ;  that  he  had  played  the 
tool  sure  enough.  The  most  sensational  topic  on  earth 
i-  the  go-pel,  and  the  most  sensational  preacher  who  ever 
lived  was  Jesus  Christ.  When  -John  sent  for  him  to 
know  whether  In;  was  the  Messiah,  what  was  his  reply? 
"Go  and  tell  John  the  things  you  both  see  and  hear; 
the  lame,  walk;  the  lepers  are  cleansed;  the  blind  re- 
ceive their  sight;  the  dead  are  raised  up,  and  the  poor 
have  the  gospel  preached  to  them."     If  that  is  not  sen- 


SERMONS.  161 

sation,  what  is?  This  was  Paul's  theme,  "  the  unsearch- 
able riches  of  Christ."  Notice  that  word — "  Unsearch- 
able." You  know  what  it  means.  It  means  riches 
that  cannot  be  estimated  at  all.  Sometime  ago  we  lost 
one  of  our  wealthiest  citizens  in  Baltimore.  And  one 
day  I  asked  his  agent  how  much  the  old  gentleman  was 
worth.  His  reply  was,  that  they  hadn't  yet  ascertained 
and  could  not  tell  until  they  took  an  account  of  his 
stocks,  ready  cash,  real  estate,  etc.  In  other  words,  the 
old  man  was  rich,  but  his  riches  were  not  unsearchable 
— they  were  not  more  than  could  be  counted.  But  the 
riches  of  Christ  are  unsearchable.  They  are  beyond  the 
ken  of  mortal  mind. 

Now  let  us  enter  the  great  Treasure  House  of  our 
God,  and  though  we  cannot  estimate  the  riches  of  Christ, 
let  us  take  one  loving  look  at  the  countless  treasures  to 
which  you  and  I  are  heirs,  if  we  believe  in  him  as  our 
Saviour  and  will  try  to  serve  him  as  our  Lord  and 
Redeemer. 

I  shall  ask  you  to  visit  only  three  departments  and 
we  shall  not  remain  very  long  in  either  one.  The  first, 
I  will  name,  The  unsearchable  riches  of  his  redeemin;/ 
•power.  Do  you  ever  think  what  the  Lord  had  to  da 
before  he  could  save  you.  As  he  looked  down  upon 
this  lost  world  and  first  saw  the  way  whereby  we  might 
be  saved,  there  were  three  great  powers  that  had  to  be 
overcome.  He  had  to  conquer  Satan,  sin  and  death  be- 
fore he  could  save  us.  He  met  them  one  by  one,  and 
victory  was  his  forever.  I  am  no  theologian,  but  in  my 
11 


162  PULPIT,    TEW   ASD    PLATFORM. 

opinion  the  throe  temptations  to  which  our  Saviour  was 
subjected  in  the  wilderness  were  right  along  the  line  of 
the  temptations  that  sweep  so  many  into  destruction  in 
this  world.  The  first  was,  the  temptation  through  his 
body — his  appetite.  The  second,  through  lis  mind — ■ 
Ambition.  The  third,  through  his  sou! — Trying  las  faith. 
Look  at  these  a  minute.  Jesus  had  fasted  a  long  time 
and  was  hungry.  The  devil  said  to  him,  "Command 
that  these  stones  be  made  bread  if  you  arc  the  Son  of 
God."  Iu  other  words,  it  was  a  temptation  to  Christ  to 
take  matters  iu  his  own  hand,  in  spite  of  the  Father's 
will,  and  this  temptation  was  brought  through  his  bodily 
weakness.  How  many  there  are  to-day  who  are  falling 
victims  by  reason  of  temptations  of  this  character !  Take 
strong  drink  alone.  Thousands  and  thousands  of  help- 
less victims  are  marching  to  their  own  destruction  day 
by  day.  When  old  Rowland  Hill  was  preaching  in 
London,  there  was  a  woman  among  the  nobility  who 
had  a  very  dissipated  son.  She  could  do  nothing  with 
him  at  all.  Ah  !  how  true  it  is.  Your  children  when 
they  are  small  tread  on  your  toes,  and  when  they  are 
grown  up  they  tread  on  your  hearts.  One  day  a  neigh- 
1)  ir  came  in  and  said  to  this  mother,  "Why  do  you  not 
take  your  son  to  hear  Rowland  Hill  preach?"  "  Be- 
cause," she  said,  "I  have  heard  that  he  says  very  ridicu- 
lous things  in  the  pulpit  ;  he  makes  people  laugh  and  I 
do  not  think  that  is  right."  There  are  many  people  who 
think  it  is  a  sin  to  laugh  in  the  church.  I  am  not  one  of 
them.     Our  Father  would  rather  see  us  enjoy  an  inno- 


SERMONS.  163 

cent  smile  than  to  hear  our  cries  of  anguish.  There  is 
more  danger  of  our  churches  dying  of  the  blues  than  of 
a  joyful  spirit.  I  had  rather  have  an  overdose  of  hi- 
larity than  to  die  of  the  hippo,  any  time.  But  the  sister 
urged  her  friend  to  take  the  son  to  the  church,  and  fi- 
nally she  consented  to  do  so.  She  was  hoping,  as  she 
sat  beside  her  boy  and  saw  Rowland  Hill  enter  the  pul- 
pit, that  he  would  avoid  anything  of  a  ludicrous  nature. 
The  old  man  commenced  his  sermon  by  sayiug:  "Breth- 
ren, I  saw  a  strange  sight  yesterday.  I  saw  a  butcher 
walking  along  the  street  with  a  lot  of  hogs  following 
him,  and  he  was  dropping  a  few  grains  of  corn  now  and 
then,  and  they  would  come  along  and  pick  it  up.  I 
said  to  myself,  '  Poor  foolish  hogs,  you  will  follow  him 
to  the  slaughter-house  and  he  will  cut  the  throats  of  the 
last  one  of  you.'  And  that  is  the  way  with  some  of 
you.  The  devil  is  tolling  you  on  with  a  drink  of  liquor 
here  and  a  game  of  cards  there  and  something  else  yon- 
der, and  you  are  following  him  until  at  last  he  will 
bring  you  down  to  the  slaughter-house  of  hell."  After 
they  returned  home  that  day,  the  son  entered  the  room 
where  the  mother  was  and  said,  "  Mother,  did  you  hear 
what  Mr.  Hill  said  about  the  hogs  to-day  ?  "  She  re- 
plied, "  Yes,  my  son,  aud  I  am  sorry  he  said  it."  "  Well, 
you  need  not  be,  mother,"  replied  the  son,  "  I  am  one 
of  those  hogs.  Mother,  will  you  pray  for  me."  I  tell 
you,  friends,  there  are  many  people  in  this  world  who 
are  being  tempted  down  to  hell,  day  by  day,  through 
their  appetite  for  strong  drink  or  some  other  temptation 


1G4  pulpit,  n:w  and  platform. 

which  comes  to  them  through  their  bodies.  Take  care 
how  you  yield  to  the  weaknesses  of  the  flesh,  for  the 
devil  knows  every  one  of  them  and  will  use  them  on 
you  with  superhuman  power. 

The  next  temptation  was  throagh  the  mind  of  our 
Saviour — Ambition,  lie  was  shown  all  the  kingdoms 
of  the  world  and  the  glory  of  them,  and  all  were  prom- 
ised to  him  if  he  would  bow  down  and  worship  the 
Prince  of  Darkness.  How  many  there  are  in  the  world 
to-day,  ambitious  for  wealth  or  office  or  social  position, 
and  who  are  willing  to  bow  down  to  the  devil  iu  order 
to  get  them.  You  know  that  every  office  from  a  cross- 
mads  Postmaster  up  to  the  Presidency  is  controlled  in  a 
large  degree  by  bribery  and  corruption.  During  our 
last  campaign  I  noticed  in  one  of  the  daily  papers  that 
a  man  had  died  and  left  his  fortune  to  the  devil.  The 
papers  said  that  the  lawyers  were  at  a  lo--  to  know  how 
to  get  it  to  him.  I  modestly  suggested  that  if  they 
would  put  the  money  in  the  hands  of  either  one  of  the 
campaign  committees,  I  thought  it  would  be  as  close  to 
the  devil  as  they  could  well  get  it.  It  is  the  same  case 
with  reference  to  business.  All  sorts  of  short  turns  are 
taken  these  days  in  business.  Some  young  men  who 
were  on  a  tear  one  night  took  a  turning  lathe  sign  and 
put  it  up  over  a  lawyer's  office,  "All  sorts  of  turning  and 
twisting  done  here."  I  think  you  might  put  that  sign 
over  a  good  many  other  houses  besides  the  law  office. 
"Just  gel  right  down  on  your  knees,"  says  the  devil, 
"and  I  will  give  you  what  you  want." 


SERMONS.  165 

The  next  temptation  and  the  last  was  through  his  soul 
— Trying  his  faith.  He  takes  him  on  the  pinnacle  of 
the  temple  and  says,  "Now,  God  has  promised  to  give 
his  angels  charge  over  you  to  keep  you  from  being  hurt ; 
jump  off  and  see  if  He  will."  In  other  words,  he  was 
trying  to  get  him  to  doubt  God's  promise,  and  that  is 
where  he  gets  in  his  work  with  us  Christian  people. 
Oh  !  if  he  can  only  get  you  to  doubt  the  Bible,  or  any 
part  or  promise  of  it,  or  in  it,  it  is  all  that  he  wants. 
The  Lord  deliver  us  from  the  preacher  or  the  people 
who  say,  "  I  believe  in  some  portions  of  the  Bible  but 
not  others."  And  if  he  can  persuade  you  to  doubt  any 
of  the  promises  he  cripples  your  usefulness  and  destroys 
your  happiness.  It  is  written,  "  Thou  shalt  not  tempt 
the  Lord  thy  God."  When  these  words  fell  from  the 
lips  of  Jesus,  Satan  retreated  from  the  field  and  our 
Redeemer  had  won  the  victory  over  his  great  adversary. 

But  sin  must  be  overcome.  I  have  sometimes  imag- 
ined that  as  John  would  be  walking  at  the  side  of  Jesus 
he  would  say  to  him,  "  Master,  what  is  the  antidote  for 
sin  ?  Where  is  the  power  that  is  to  overcome  its  evil  in 
our  natures?  Where  is  the  fountain  in  which  our  souls 
may  be  washed  and  made  clean?  "  And  throwing  back 
the  garment  from  his  spotless  arm  and  pointing  to  the 
royal  purple  veins  the  Lord  would  say  to  him,  "  It  is  in 
here,  John  ;  my  own  blood  must  flow  for  a  fountain  for 
the  cleansing  of  the  people."  And  when  at  last  amid  the 
agonies  of  Calvary,  while  his  blood  was  flowing  from 
his  hands,  his  feet,  his  side,  his  head,  he  exclaimed,  "It 


1G6  PULPIT,    PEW   AM)   PLATFORM. 

is  finished,"  the  fountain  was  then  opened;  salvation 
was  accomplished,  sin  was  overcome. 

But  while  this  was  being;  doue  the  Angel  of  Darkness 
went  home  with  the  news  that  Jesus  Chris!  was  dead. 
What  Satan  could  not  do,  what  sin  could  not  accom- 
plish, death  had  done.  I  can  imagine  the  evil  messenger 
publishing  the  tidings  among  the  regions  of  the  damned. 
He  is  dead  !  The  would-be  Redeemer  of  mankind  is 
dead !  Not  only  dead,  hut  in  the  grave ;  not  only  in 
the  grave,  hut  a  stone  has  been  fastened  over  the  mouth 
of  the  sepulchre  and  an  armed  guard  placed  around  it. 
He  is  ours  forever.  The  scene  changes.  In  heaven 
there  stands  in  the  presence  of  the  Father  a  white-winged 
messenger  of  light.  He  is  receiving  orders  and  soon 
like  a  lightning  Hash  he  is  seen  descending  to  the  earth 
and  pauses  over  the  door  of  the  sepulchre.  As  he  takes 
his  stand  before  that  gloomy  grave  the  soldiers  fall  hack- 
as  dead,  the  stone  is  rolled  away  and  Jesus  our  Saviour 
anl  Redeemer  rises  from  the  tomb  the  conqucrcr  of 
Satan,  sin  and  death.  Oh  !  the  unsearchable  riches  of 
his  redeeming  power.  I  do  not  ask  what  may  be  your 
condition,  how  long  you  have  sinned,  how  far  you  have 
wandered  from  the  fold  of  God.  Stop  and  think  of  the 
redeeming  power  of  Jesus  Christ  and  you  cannot  ques- 
tion his  ability  to  save  you.  Let  this  glad  thought 
Strengthen  our  hearts  as  Christian  men  and  women,  and 
let  us  go  forth  and  tell  of  his  power  to  save. 

I  must  ask  you  to  visit  with  me  now  another  room 
which   I   will   name    The    Unsearchable   Riches  of  his 


SERMONS.  167 

Pardoning  Love.  Did  you  ever  experience  it?  If  not, 
it  will  be  impossible  for  you  to  understand  it,  and  if  you 
have,  you  cannot  tell  about  it.  Let  your  mind  go  back 
to  the  hour  when  first  you  knew  the  Lord — when  you 
experienced  the  sweet  hope  of  salvation  through  the 
pardoning  love  of  Christ.  What  joy!  What  peace! 
It  was  heaven  in  the  heart.  I  was  told  by  a  preacher 
in  the  South  that  one  day  a  gentleman  was  riding  on  a 
train  going  out  from  Atlanta,  Ga.,  and  noticed  a  pas- 
senger who  seemed  very  restless — moving  from  one  seat 
to  another.  Finally  his  curiosity  was  excited  and  he 
said  to  him,  "  Excuse  me,  sir,  but  you  seem  to  be  very 
restless.  Is  anything  the  matter?"  He  replied,  "I 
have  been  up  here  to  Atlanta  to  a  distinguished  oculist 
to  have  my  eyes  operated  upon.  I  was  blind  for  nearly 
twenty  years  and  he  has  cured  me  and  now  I  am  going 
home.  I  have  telegraphed  my  wife  and  children  to 
meet  me  at  the  station.  There  are  two  of  my  children 
I  have  never  seen  and  I  am  so  anxious  to  get  there." 
The  gentleman  said  that  the  train  was  running  at  the 
rate  of  forty  miles  an  hour,  but  the  man  seemed  to  think 
it  was  the  slowest  train  he  ever  traveled  on  in  his  life. 
I  wonder  sometimes  if  the  train  does  not  seem  slow  to 
all  of  us  as  it  takes  us  along  toward  the  end  of  our  earthly 
journey,  when  we  think  of  those  who  have  gone  home 
and  we  have  not  seen  them  for  so  long;  and  the  time  is 
approaching  when  we  shall  meet  them  again.  Does  not 
the  old  gospel  train  seem  to  travel  rather  slowly  ?  The 
gentleman  said  while  they  were  talking  the  train  whistled 


168  PULPIT,    PEW    AND    PLATFORM. 

for  the  station  and  the  man  started  from  his  scat  in- 
stantlv,  leaving  Ins  valise,  his  umbrella  and  making  for 
the  door  exclaimed,  "  Yonder  they  are."  And  as  he 
leaped  from  the  train  his  wife  and  three  or  four  children 
were  standing  on  the  ground.  He  put  his  arms  around 
them  all  ami  cried  out,  "I  can  see!  1  can  sec!  Thank 
God,  I  can  see! " 

With  some  such  feelings  you  and  I  rejoiced  when 
for  the  first  time  the  sense  of  pardon  filled  our  souls, 
and  there  is  not  a  day  that  passes  but  we  have  need 
of  this  pardoning  love  of  Christ!  Every  night 
when  you  kneel  down  by  the  side  of  your  bed  and  look 
back  over  the  doings  of  the  day  you  have  reason  to  say, 
''( rod  pardon  me  for  what  I  have  done  wrong  this  day." 
And  so  we  shall  have  need  of  it  even  unto  the  end,  but 
these  riches  of  pardoning  love  are  unsearchable  and  they 
Mill  endure  to  the  last.  I  have  gone  up  to  the  very  last 
hour  with  the  saints  of  God,  and  they  assured  me  that 
though  they  had  need  for  his  pardoning  love  as  long  as 
life  remained,  the  supply  never  grew  less,  nor  did  the 
willingness  to  bestow  it  diminish  in  the  heart  of  our 
loving  Lord  and  Redeemer. 

We  must  pass  into  one  more  room,  but  we  shall  not 
linger  long,  and  this  I  will  call  The  Unsearchable  Hi<-Ii<s 
of  his  Sustaining  (''race.  I  think  one  of  the  greatest 
temptations  ever  brought  against  us  was  when  the  devil 
tried  to  persuade  us  that  we  could  not  hold  out  faithful 
to  the  end.  When  you  or  I  were  first  thinking  of  serving 
the  Lord  this  was  our  greatest   temptation,  "  You  will 


SERMONS.  169 

not  hold  out."     And  we  thought  so,  too.     Well,  here 
we  are  to-day,  thank  God,  and  we  can  sing : 

"  Here  I'll  raise  mine  Ebenezer, 
Hither,  by  thy  help,  I'm  come ; 
And  I  hope  by  thy  good  pleasure, 
Safely  to  arrive  at  home." 

Oh  !  the  unsearchable  riches  of  his  sustaining  grace. 
We  will  have  our  trials,  afflictions,  disappointments  and 
discouragements.  We  have  blundered  and  fallen ;  bitter 
tears  of  anguish  have  scalded  our  cheeks  and  our  hearts 
have  been  made  to  ache  and  bleed  from  great  failures, 
but  hitherto  hath  the  Lord  helped  us — his  grace  has 
been  sufficient  for  us. 

"Amazing  grace!  (how  sweet  the  sound!) 
That  saved  a  wretch  like  me ! 
I  once  was  lost,  but  now  am  found, 
Was  blind,  but  now  I  see. 

'Twas  grace  that  taught  my  heart  to  fear, 

And  grace  my  fears  relieved  ; 
How  precious  did  that  grace  appear, 

The  hour  I  first  believed  ! 

Through  many  a  danger,  toil  and  snare, 

I  have  already  come ; 
'Tis  grace  has  brought  me  safe  thus  far, 

And  grace  will  lead  me  home." 

And  now  let  me  ask  you  solemnly  and  earnestly:  Are 
these  unsearchable  riches  yours?  When  Patrick  Henry 
wrote  his  will  he  concluded  it  by  saying:  "  I  have  now 
bequeathed  my  earthly  possessions  to  my  family.     There 


170  PULPIT,    PEW    AND    PLATFORM. 

is  one  thinsr  more  I  should  like  to  leave  them  ;  without  it 
they  arc  poor,  no  matter  what  else  they  mighl  poss 
with  it  they  would  lie  rich,  though  they  should  have 
nothing  else.  It  is  the  religion  of  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ."  May  the  Lord  give  to  you  and  to  me  an  ever- 
abiding  assurance  that  Jesus  ( Ihrist  is  our  Saviour,  and 
then  whatever  may  come  or  may  not  eomc,  heaven,  with 
all  its  joys,  shall  he  ours  at  last,  and  though  we  may  pass 
through  this  world  in  pain  or  be  compelled  to  suffer 
privations,  we  shall  win  the  victory  and  enter  upon  the 
inheritance  of  the  saints  above. 


IV. 

LECTURES. 


THE  UPS  AND  DOWNS  OF  LIFE. 

This  lecture  is  inserted  by  way  of  rest  and  amusement  for  the  reader 
with  the  hope  that  it  may  be  helpful  as  well.  H.  M.   W. 

IF  I  were  called  upon  to  write  the  history  of  each  one 
here,  in  three  short  simple  words,  I.  should  use  the 
words  that  I  have  chosen  as  the  subject  of  this  lecture — 
"  Ups  and  Downs."  It  is  the  history  of  the  world,  and 
of  every  man  and  woman  in  it. 

The  world  itself  is  continually  having  its  ups  and 
downs.  The  sun  has  his  ups  and  downs — the  sea  has 
its  ups  and  downs,  its  storms  and  its  calms — its  high 
tides  and  low  tides.  Nations  have  their  ups  and  downs, 
their  days  of  prosperity  and  adversity  ;  and,  what  is 
true  of  all  these,  is  true  of  you  and  me.  AVe  do  not 
travel  a  level  road  through  life :  sometimes  we  are  pass- 
ing through  the  vales;  sometimes  over  the  hills; 
sometimes  we  are  in  the  depths;  and  then,  again,  We 
are  on  the  heights.  The  phrase  is  short,  but  unique 
and  expressive  ;  it  tells  of  our  joys  and  our  sorrows — 
our  trials  and  our  triumphs. 

Two  young  men,  who  were  college  mates,  and  had 

171 


172  PULPIT,    PEW  AND    PLATFORM. 

not  met  for  twenty  years,  wen;  surprised  one  day  in 
coming  suddenly  upon  each  other.  One  said  to  the 
oilier, —  Hallo,  -Jim  !  how  are  you?"  "How  have  you 
been  all  these  long  years  !"  "  Well,"  said  he,  "  I  have 
had  a  great  many  ups  and  downs  since  I  saw  you  last. 
Sit  down,  old  fellow,  and  tell  me  some  of  thorn.  Well  ; 
married  since  we  met."  "Ah,  indeed!  that's  good  !  " 
"  I  don't  know  whether  it's  good  or  not ;  I  reckon  I  mar- 
ried the  '  meanest  woman  in  the  world  ! '  '  "  Well,  that's 
bad  !  "  "I  don't  know  whether  it  is  or  not, — she  had 
lots  of  money."  "  That's  good  ! "  "I  don't  know ! "  "I 
spent  the  money  in  sheep,  and  they  all  died."  "  That's 
had!"  "I  don't  know,  I  sold  the  wool  for  more  money 
than  I  gave  for  the  sheep."  "That's  good!"  "I 
don't  know,  I  spent  the  money  building  a  house  and  it 
burned  down!"  "That's  bad!"  "I  don't  know,  my 
wife  was  burned  up  in  the  house!"  You  see  he  had 
his  ups  and  downs. 

And  so  do  all  of  us. 

In  preparing  this  lecture,  I  undertook  to  classify 
these  ups  and  downs,  and  thought,  as  preachers  gener- 
ally do,  that  I  would  put  what  I  had  to  say  under 
dill' rent  heads, —  Firstly,  secondly,  etc.,  but  I  found  it 
a  very  difficult  thing  to  do.  However,  I  threw  them 
into  some  sort  of  confusion  after  the  following  derange- 
ment. 

There  are 

s.x-l  \l,    DTPS    A\I>    DOWNS. 

All  of  us  know  of  men  and  women  who  were  once 


LECTURES.  173 

socially  down ;  and  who,  by  the  turn  of  fortune's  wheel, 
have  become  leaders  in  society  now.  Others  whom  we 
knew  years  ago,  who  were  the  upper  tens,  as  they  call 
them  in  Virginia,  are  now  low  down  in  the  scale. 

Sometime  .ago,  I  was  preaching  in  Atlanta,  Ga.,  and 
after  the  sermon,  I  saw  a  shabbily  dressed  man  come 
walking  up  the  aisle.  His  coat  was  ragged  ;  he  had  on 
no  collar ;  his  face  unshaven,  he  looked  like  a  tramp  to 
me.  I  soon  recognized  him  as  the  son  of  a  gentleman, 
who  had  lived,  a  few  years  ago,  in  our  state — a  man  of 
wealth  and  of  social  standing.  This  man,  among  others 
of  his  brothers,  was  one  of  the  foremost  young  men  in 
the  neighborhood.  That  night,  as  he  looked  into  my 
face,  he  said  to  me,  "  I  have  not  a  friend  in  this  city  ;  I 
have  no  money ;  I  have  nothing  to  eat,  and  no  place  to 
sleep," — socially  down  ! 

Then  there  are  the 

MORAL   UPS   AND   DOWNS. 

Persons  who  were  once  examples  of  all  that  is  good, 
and  right,  and  proper,  in  their  deportment — suddenly  a 
change  comes,  and  they  are  avoided  as  moral  lepers  in 
their  neighborhood. 

Adam  is  a  striking  example  of  moral  ups  and  downs 
and  in  a  very  brief  space  of  time.  By  the  way,  I  heard 
a  pretty  good  thing  on  Adam,  some  time  ago.  A  man, 
whose  name  is  well  known  to  all  of  us — Artemas 
Ward,  was  riding  on  the  train,  and  one  of  those  talka- 
tive passengers  came  up,  and  tried  to  engage  him  in  a 


174  PULPIT,    PEW   AND   PLATFORM. 

conversation.  You  know,  there  are  some  talkative  peo- 
ple in  this  world — people  who  have  that  disease  we  call 
"running  at  the  mouth,"  and  when  oner  they  get  to 
talking,  it  seems  almost  impossible  to  stop  thorn.  There 
were  two  men  who  lived  in  a  neighborhood  once,  and 
were  known  as  the  talkers  of  that  neighborhood.  Peo- 
ple would  go  a  mile  out  of  their  way  to  miss  one  of 
them  at  any  time.  They  became  intolerable  nuisances, 
as  great  talkers  generally  do,  and  the  people  determined 
that  they  would  just  lock  them  both  up  in  a  room,  and 
see  what  would  be  the  result — let  them  talk  to  each 
other  to  their  own  satisfaction.  They  furnished  them 
■with  rations,  and  left  them  to  themselves.  They  opened 
the  door,  a  few  days  afterwards,  and  found  one  of  them 
dead  on  the  floor,  and  the  other  was  on  his  knees  beside 
him — whispering  in  his  ear.  He  had  talked  him  ab- 
solutely to  death!  Well,  one  of  this  same  kind  got  on 
the  train,  and  undertook  to  engage  Artcmas  Ward  in 
conversation.  Ward  did  not  care  about  being  bored  to 
death,  and  so,  he  determined  to  bluff  the  man,  if  he 
could  in  any  way.  The  man  opened  the  conversation 
by  saying:  "  George  Francis  Train  is  creating  quite  a 
stir  in  England  now."  Ward  said!  '"Train!  Train! 
Train!  I  don't  think  I  ever  heard  that  name  before!" 
"You  don't!"  The  man  waited  awhile,  and  made  a 
second  attack.  "  What  do  you  think  of  Horace  Greeley's 
chances  for  the  presidency?"  "Greeley!  Greeley!"  said 
Ward,  "I  don't  think  T  ever  heard  that  name  before!" 
"You  didn't  1"     By  and  bye,  he  came  at  him  again. 


LECTURES.  175 

"Have  you  heard  this  last  tiling  about  Grant?" 
"  Grant!  Grant! — I  don't  think  I  ever  heard  that  name 
before."  Well,  the  passenger  was  perplexed.  He  sat, 
thoughtfully,  for  a  tew  minutes,  and  then  opened  on 
Artcmas  Ward  again.  "Say,  old  tow  head,  did  you 
ever  hear  of  Adam  ?"  "Adam!  Adam!"  said  Ward, 
— "  what  was  his  first  name  ?  *'  The  man  was  utterly 
confounded ;  he  resumed  his  seat,  and  concluded  that 
ho  would  give  that  stranger  up  as  a  hard  case! 

Adam  was  morally  up  at  one  time,  and,  soon  after, 
morally  down — when  he  walked  out  of  the  Garden  of 
Edeu  with  the  curse  of  Heaven  upon  his  head. 

SPIRITUAL   UPS   AND   DOWNS. 

There  is  not  a  Christian  man  in  my  audience  but  has 
had  these  spiritual  ups  and  downs.  It  was  so  with  our 
Saviour  himself.  At  one  time,  he  rejoiced  in  spirit;  at 
another  time,  his  soul  was  exceeding  sorrowful — even 
unto  death.  There  are  times  when  you  have  felt  your 
heart  so  full  of  love  that  you  would  sing  with  the  spirit 
and  with  the  understanding;  when  you  went  in  prayer 
to  God,  you  seemed  to  pour  out  your  very  soul,  and 
could  almost  look  into  his  face,  and  glory  crowned  the 
merey-seat."  You  could  hardly  tell  whether  you  were 
in  the  body,  or  out  of  it.  I  have  realized  this  in 
preaching  sometimes.  It  seemed  to  me  as  if  I  were 
borne  along  by  an  invisible  power, — the  thoughts  flock- 
ing around  me,  and  begging  to  be  uttered, — my  heart 
burning  with  zeal — my  soul  all  on  fire  with  fervor  and 


17(J  PULPIT,    PEW    AND    PLATFORM. 

unction  from  on  high.  At  another  time,  I  would  have 
been  glad  could  I  have  found  the  back  door  of  the 
pulpit,  and  have  gotten  out,  and  gone  away,  and  sat 
down  under  a  juniper  tree,  or  some  other  sort  of  tree, — 
a  hollow  tree  would  have  stood  me  better  than  anything 
else — and  have  gotten  out  of  the  public  gaze.  So,  some- 
times you  have  felt, — when  your  prayers  languished  on 
your  lips — your  songs  were  in  a  minor  key — your  heart 
was  heavy  as  lead  within  your  bosom, — spiritually 
down  ! 

On  one  occasion  I  was  called  to  see  a  young  man, 
whose  mother  told  me  he  was  very  anxious  about  the 
salvation  of  his  soul.  When  I  went  to  the  house  she 
said  to  me,  "  My  poor  boy  saw  you  coming,  and  he  has 
gone  away  to  hide  from  you.  He  is  down  about  the 
barn."  I  said,  "  I  will  go  down  and  find  him."  He 
Mas  sorely  afflicted  with  nervous  disease,  and  some  trou- 
ble with  his  liver,  and  was  habitually  depressed.  I 
found  him  leaning  against  the  house — his  hat  pulled 
down  over  his  eyes — the  very  picture  of  despondency. 
I  went  up  to  him,  and  asked  him  how  he  felt.  He 
said,  "  I  am  lost  ;  there  is  not  any  hope  for  me  !"  He 
had  a  little  Testament  in  his  pocket,  and  opened  it  at 
some  of  the  verses  which  utter  condemnation  against  the 
univpenting  sinner,  and  putting  his  finger  upon  them, 
he  would  Eay,  "That  means  me, —  I  am  condemned  for- 
ever! "  He  was  spiritually  down  !  I  visited  him  day 
after  day  for  many  days — would  walk  with  him  in  the 
woods — across    the    fields,    and   talk   to  him  of  Jesus. 


LECTURES.  177 

The  light  seemed  to  break  in  slowly  upon  his  soul ;  and 
one  day,  he  said  to  me:  "I  see  how  it  is  now:  Join  came 
to  save  the  lost, — I  believe  he  has  saved  me;"  and  be 
rejoiced  with  great  joy.  He  was  spiritually,  up  then  ! 
I  baptized  him,  and  received  him  into  the  church — a 
happy  convert.  One  day  I  was  walking  along  the 
street,  and  saw  him  approaching.  His  hat  was  down — 
he  was  looking  upon  the  ground  just  before  him  as  he 
walked.  He  said  to  me,  "  It  is  all  over  with  me.  I 
am  afraid  that  I  have  been  mistaken, — there  is  no  hope 
for  me — no  hope  at  all !"  I  saw  what  the  trouble  was, 
so  I  said,  cheerfully,  "  Well,  let's  put  an  end  to  this 
matter, — just  let  me  buy  your  hope  !  I  will  buy  it  out 
this  morning,  and  then, — never  trouble  yourself  about 
it  any  more.  If  ever  the  thought  should  come  to  you 
hereafter  about  salvation,  just  remember  that  you  sold 
your  hope  to  me.  Now,  what  will  you  take  for  it?" 
He  looked  into  my  face,  for  the  first  time,  and  Said  : 
''Take  for  it !  What  will  I  take  for  it!  Sell  my 
hope  !  What  would  I  take  for  my  hope  !  Why,  sir,  I 
would  not  take  ten  thousand  worlds  like  this  of  solid 
gold!"  '•  Then,"  said  I,  "you  have  a  great  deal  more 
hope  than  you  thought  you  had,  and  it  is  of  a  great  deal 
more  value  to  you  than  you  supposed!"  Smiling,  he 
walked  away  :  the  clouds  were  gone  :  he  was  spiritually 
up  again  ! 

So  it  is  with  us  all,  and  so  it  ever  will   be;  but,  bro- 
ther, when  you  have  these  changing  feelings, — remem- 
ber  there   is  one   who   changes  not ;  and  whether  you 
12 


178  PULPIT,    PEW   AND    PLATFORM. 

walk  in  the  clay,  or  in  the  night — whether  in  sorrow  or 
in  joy — we  are  spiritually  up  or  spiritually  down, — ■ 
Jesus  loves  you,  and  will  never  forsake  you. 

There  is  another  kind  yet — a  very  common  kind  too! 

TIIE   FINANCIAL   UPS   AND   DOWNS. 

We  have  all  had  them, — mostly  downs!  Ah,  we've 
all  been  along  there.  I  tell  you,  if  you  want  to  take 
the  manhood  out  of  a  man,  just  let  him  be  out  of  money. 
Let  him  go  along  the  street,  and  see  a  fellow  coming  to 
whom  he  owes  a  bill,  and  cannot  pay  it;  lie  wants  to  g  I 
round  some  other  way, —  about  that  time  he  thinks 
there  is  somebody  he  would  like  to  see  around  another 
square ! 

There  are  not  many  of  us  like  a  man  I  once  heard  of. 
He  was  spending  the  night  at  a  hotel.  He  heard  some 
one  walking  in  the  room  above  his  head  in  a  very  rest- 
less manner  for  hours.  He  could  not  sleep.  This  man 
was  walking — walking  back  and  forth  !  lie  concluded 
the  man  must  be  sick,  and  he  would  go  up  and  sec  what 
on  earth  was  the  matter.  So.  he  went  up,  and  knock*  d 
at  the  door.  The  man  came  and  opened  it,  but  con- 
tinued walking.  lie  said  to  him:  "Stranger,  I  heard 
yoa  walking  up  here  so,  and  in  such  a  restless  way,  [ 
thought  maybe  I  could  do  something  for  you, — is  any- 
thing the  matter, — are  you  sick?"  "Oh,"  said  the 
man,  "  I  am  worse  than  sick."  "Worse  than  sick! — 
well,  do  tell  me  what  is  the  matter, — what  on  earth 
makes  you  walk  this  way?"     "  Why,"  said   he,  "sir,  I 


LECTURES.  179 

have  a  note  due  to-morrow  for  $500.  and  I  haven't  a 
dollar  to  pay  it  with  ! "  "  Well,  my  dear  sir,  you  ain't 
the  man  to  do  the  walking;  the  other  fellow  is  the  one 
to  do  the  walking;  you  go  to  bed." 

Now,  there  are  not  many  of  us  who  can  look  at  it 
just  in  that  way.  When  we  owe  a  debt,  and  cannot 
pav  it,  it  makes  us,  like  old  Mr.  Smith  used  to  be  when 
trouble  vexed  his  soul.  He  had  a  way  of  saying  he 
was  "on  a  low  limb!"  I  have  seen  the  day  myself 
when  I  have  searched  in  every  one  of  my  pockets  try- 
ing to  find  a  nickel,  and  by  and  by,  thought  I  had  it, 
and  when  I  pulled  it  out  of  my  pocket  exultingly, — lo, 
and  behold  it  was  a  button! — financially  down  !  —  we 
have  all  been  along  that  road. 

Let  us  change  the  style  of  this  lecture  somewhat  and 
recollect 

SOME   OF   THE    SCENES    OF    THE    UPS  AND    DOWNS    OF 

LIFE. 

I  do  not  know  what  yours  have  been,  but  can  tell 
you  some  of  mine,  and  some  of  others  that  have  come 
under  my  observation,  or  that  have  been  told  me  by 
those  who  have  experienced  them. 

There  are 

THE   UPS   AND    DOWNS   OF   CHILDHOOD. 

If  you  think  that  every  child  in  this  world  is  happy, 
you  miss  the  mark  a  long  way.  People  sing  about,  "  I 
would  I  were  a  child  again,"  and  say  how  happy  they 
were  when  they  were  children.     You  were  not  one  par- 


180  PULPIT,    PEW   AND   PLATFORM. 

tide  happier  when  you  were  a  child  than  you  are  now. 
Children  have  their  ups  and  downs  as  well  as  grown 
people;  and  if  the  burdens  are  not  as  big,  they  are  as 
hard  to  bear  to  their  young  hearts  as  your  and  my  sor- 
rows are  to  as. 

I  can  remember  well  when  my  mother  had  dressed 
me  in  a  nice  new  suit  of  clothes,  and  father  would  let 
me  ride  alone  on  a  sorrel  mare  he  used  to  have,  and 
when  I  would  get  on  that  old  mare,  and  take  the  bridle 
in  one  hand  and  some  of  her  mane  in  the  other,  and 
start  off  to  Sunday-school, — I  was  up  then  !  There 
wasn't  a  happier  boy  in  the  whole  neighborhood.  Then, 
that  day,  my  good  mother  would  invite  a  whole  lot  of 
people  home  to  dinner,  and  I  had  to  wait  till  the  second 
table,  and  it  seemed  to  me  they  were  going  to  eat  through 
all  eternity — I  waiting  and  waiting  for  them  to  get 
through — hungry  as  I  could  be  :  I  was  dowu  then  ! 

If  I  had  a  home  and  little  children,  I  would  let  them 
come  to  the  first  table,  and  would  help  them  first  Q\ery 
time. 

A  gentleman  told  me,  some  time  ago,  that  in  his 
childhood  he  lived  in  the  State  of  Connecticut.  His 
mother  was  a  Congregationalism  One  day  the  Method- 
ists had  a  conference  near  her  home — they  were  North- 
ern Methodists — and  the  preachers  had  a  custom  of 
asking  a  blessing  before  the  meal,  and  returning  thanks 
after  the  meal.  This  gentleman  said,  he  and  his  little 
brother  had  never  known  anything  of  that  sort.  They 
had  been  used  to  hear  a   blessing  asked,  and   after  the 


LECTURES.  181 

blessing  the  meal ;  but,  the  returning  of  thanks  was  some- 
thing entirely  new.  One  day,  during  the  conference,  their 
mother  invited  six  Methodist  preachers  home  to  dinner 
— she  was  a  brave  woman,  wasn't  she!  Any  house- 
keeper who  can  undertake  to  feed  six  Methodist  preach- 
ers must  be  a  woman  of  good  nerve!  Well,  he  said,  he 
and  his  little  brother  were  told  by  his  mother  that  they 
must  wait  until  the  second  table.  So  they  took  their 
seat  in  the  corner  of  the  dining-room,  not  far  from  the 
table.  The  preachers  bowed  their  heads  and  asked  a 
blessing,  and  then  commenced  to  dispose  of  the  boun- 
teous supplies  put  before  them.  He  said,  it  seemed  to 
him  they  would  never  get  through,  and  his  little  bro- 
ther was  more  restless  than  himself.  By  and  by  they 
all  bowed  their  heads  the  second  time,  to  return  thanks. 
His  little  brother  could  not  stand  it  any  longer.  He 
caught  him  by  the  jacket  and  said  to  him:  "Mercy, 
mercy,  Johnny,  they're  going  to  eat  again ! "  Now, 
don't  you  think  these  little  fellows  were  down? 

I  was  told  quite  an  amusing  story  in  Wilmington, 
Del.  A  gentleman  there,  who  was  a  very  irreligious 
and  ungodly  man,  had  a  good  Christian  wife,  who  was 
a  member  of  the  Methodist  Church.  They  had  but 
one  son — a  little  boy,  who,  following  his  father's  exam- 
ple, was  a  very  wicked  little  fellow.  One  day,  during 
the  meeting  that  was  being  held  in  that  city,  the  lady 
decided  that  she  would  invite  some  of  the  preachers 
home  to  dinner,  and  begged  her  husband  that  he  would 
be  very  guarded  in  his  speech  at  the  dinner-table.     She 


182  PULPIT,    PEW  AND    PLATFORM. 

told  her  little  son  that  he  must  wait  for  the  second 
table.  The  old  man  said  no,  he  should  do  no  such 
thine,  but  should  sit  at  his  left  hand  at  the  table.  He 
cautioned  the  little  boy  that  if  he  uttered  a  word  he 
should  be  whipped  immediately  after  the  meal.  When 
the  strangers  took  their  seats  the  old  gentleman  com- 
menced to  ask  them  what  they  would  have  to  eat.  He 
said  to  the  man  on  his  right :  "  Will  you  have  a  piece. 
of  turkey  ?  "  "I  am  a  little  dyspeptic,  I  never  eat 
turkey."  "  Will  you  have  a  piece  of  ham?"  "No;  I 
never  eat  ham."  "  Won't  you  take  a  piece  of  that 
duck?"  "No;  I  never  eat  duck."  The  little  boy's 
patience  was  wearing  out  rapidly.  He  saw  all  of  those 
delicious  things  before  him,  and  was  ready  to  cat  them 
if  he  could  only  get  a  chance.  The  man  of  the  house 
continued  to  ask  the  preacher — "  Will  you  take  some 
of  that  chicken  pie,  sir,  you  will  find  it  very  nice?" 
"  No  ;  I  never  eat  pie."  "  Will  you  have  some  of  this 
pickle?"  "No;  I  never  eat  pickle."  The  little  boy 
forgot  himself;  looking  up  into  his  father's  face,  he 
said  :  "  Papa,  ask  the  fool  if  he'll  suck  a  raw  egg !  " 
And  (he  old  man  sent  the  boy  back  on  the  floor,  and 
the  little  fellow  was  down  sure  enough. 

Oh,  yes,  the  little  children  have  their  ups  and  downs. 

One  Christmas  morning,  a  man  who  had  spent  all 
that  he  had  in  drink,  walked  into  a  bar-room  to  get  his 
morning  dram.  The  bar-keeper  came  in,  with  his  lit- 
tle girl  in  his  arms.  She  was  kicking  her  feet  about, 
and  saying,  "  See  my  pretty  shoes — see  my  pretty  new 


LECTURES.  183 

shoes ! "  The  man  stood  with  his  eyes  fixed  on  the 
child's  pretty  new  shoes.  The  bar-keeper  put  the  hot- 
tie  and  the  glass  upon  the  counter,  but  the  man  did  not 
touch  it.  "  Why  don't  you  drink,  man  ?  "  "  No,  sir," 
said  the  poor  fellow,  "  no  drink  for  me  to  day  ;  your 
little  daughter  has  her  pretty  new  shoes — she  is  happy 
this  morning.  Who  paid  for  those  shoes?  Yonder  is 
my  poor  little  Mary  at  home,  this  Christmas  morning, 
with  her  cold  blue  feet  bare,  with  no  shoes  at  all,  in 
her  old  ragged  dress.  That  child  of  mine  has  not  even 
a  breakfast  to  cat ;  and  I  am  here,  paying  for  your 
child's  new  shoes!  No,  sir,  no  more  drink  forme!" 
He  went  back  to  his  home,  and  took  his  little  child  in 
his  arms,  and  pressed  her  to  his  heart.  He  said,  as  he 
kissed  her  again  and  again  :  "You  poor  neglected  child 
— you  know  what  it  is  this  Christmas  morning  to  be 
cold  and  hungry;  but,  God  helping  me,  the  Christmas 
shall  never  come  again  when  my  child  shall  not  have 
that  which  shall  make  her  comfortable;  "  and,  from  that 
hour,  the  little  girl  who  had  been  in  sorrow  and  suffer- 
ing so  long,  and  the  heart-broken  mother,  who  sat  that 
day  by  the  empty  fire-place,  without  the  comforts  and 
blessings  of  life,  were  lifted  up  into  that  sunshine  that 
ever  comes  into  the  home  where  an  honest  and  indus- 
trious man  labors  to  care  for  those  who  are  nearest  and 
dearest  to  his  heart. 

In  this  great  world  of  ours,  to-day,  there  are  many 
children  high  up  in  society,  who  know  all  the  pleasures 
and  joys  of  life :  there  are  others  who  arc  down  in  the 


184  PULPIT,    PEW    AND    PLATFORM. 

very  depths  of  poverty,  and  distress,  and  shame.  Oh  ! 
I  shall  never  forget  the  morning,  when,  at  3  o'clock,  a 
dear  relative  of  mine  came  into  my  room,  where  my 
brother  and  I  slept,  in  our  little  bed.  When  I  awoke, 
and  looked  into  her  face,  she  said :  "  Co  me,*  get  up,  I 
want  you  to  go  with  me."  I  went  with  her  into 
mother's  room.  I  saw  my  brothers — my  sisters  stand- 
ing around  the  bed — my  father  was  kneeling  at  the  bed- 
side. My  cousin  told  me  to  come  up  and  kiss  mother, 
and  tell  her  "  good-bye."  I  said,  "  Where  is  she  go- 
ing?" They  told  me  she  was  dying.  As  I  pressed 
the  last  kiss  upon  the  lips  of  my  dying  mother,  they 
said  :  "  Listen  !  she  is  speaking  to  you  !"  I  heard,  in 
a  faint  low  whisper,  these  words  :  "  Meet  me  in  Heaven!  " 
The  next  morning,  when  I  looked  out  on  the  world,  its 
light  and  its  joy  were  gone.  I  felt  "  if  I  could  only 
hear  my  mother  cull  me  once  more;  if  I  could  only 
ran  to  her  again,  and  have  her  kiss  away  the  pain,  and 
soothe  the  sorrowsof  my  heart,  I  should  be  happy — oh, 
so  happy  !"  I  wandered  into  the  parlor  that  day,  and 
stood  there  beside  her  lifeless  form.  I  looked  into  her 
face,  and  kissed  her,  and  called  her,  but  she  answered 
not!  God  help  the  child  that  loses  its  mother!  Next 
morning,  as  I  stood  looking  out  at  the  window,  and  saw 
the  undertaker  come,  with  a  screw  driver  in  his  hand, 
as  he  walked  to  the  house;  aud  I  knew  that  that  in- 
strument was  to  fasten  the  lid  upon  my  mother's  coffin, 
it  could  not  have  hurt  me  worse  had  it  been  a  knife 
that   was  to  have  been  pi  tinged  into  my  heart !     Ah  ! 


LECTURES.  185 

friends,  I  tell  you,  children  in  this  world  have  their 
sorrows  as  well  as  grown  people.     They  have  their  ups 
and  downs  as  sure  as  you  live. 
Then,  there  are 

THE   UPS   AND   DOWNS   OF   SCHOOL   DAYS. 

When  I  first  started  to  school  my  father  called  me 
up  and  said  :  "  My  son,  you  are  going  to  school  now, 
and  I  want  to  tell  you  there  is  no  reason  why  you 
should  ever  have  a  whipping  while  at  school ;  but,  if 
you  do,  as  soon  as  you  get  home  I  will  give  you  an- 
other ! "  I  thought,  "  dear  me — if  this  is  school  I 
never  want  to  go  there ! "  The  fact  is,  I  never  did 
like  books.  The  school-house  to  me  was  always  a 
prison-house.  As  I  would  sit  there,  with  the  old 
soiled  spelling  book  in  my  hand,  and  look  out  at  the 
beautiful  trees  in  the  forest,  and  hear  the  birds  singing, 
and  see  the  pretty  little  squirrels  jump  from  limb  to 
limb,  I  thought  of  all  things  in  this  world,  I  would 
like  to  be  a  squirrel,  or  a  bird,  or  anything  that  did  not 
have  to  go  to  school.  And,  some  days,  I  would  hear 
the  hounds  coming  through  the  woods,  full  tilt,  after 
the  old  hare ;  and  when  I  would  see  them  come  by  the 
window  I  felt  like  jumping  out,  and  following  the 
dogs  instead  of  bothering  with  books. 

One  night  a  cousin  of  my  mother's  came  from  Mis- 
souri to  see  her.  She  was  an  old  maid — dear  old 
maids  !  the  Lord  be  merciful  to  them,  and  bless  them  ; 
but  they  are  always  getting  some  body  into  trouble.     I 


186  PULPIT,    PEW   AND    PLATFORM. 

had  an  old  maid  aunt  once.  She  never  would  let  me 
play  when  I  wanted  to  play;  she  was  always  telling 
my  mother  that  I  would  get  into  mischief.  The  ser- 
vants did  not  like 'her  any  better  than  I  did.  We 
had  a  colored  man,  who  was  a  sort  of  a  wag,  and  one 
day  I  said  to  him:  "William,  do  you  think  Aunt 
Emily  will  ever  die?"  He  said:  "  No,  sir,  I  think 
God  has  forgot  her  ! " 

When  this  old-maid  cousin  came  to  see  my  mother, 
my  brother  and  I  were  in  the  sitting  room  at  our  les- 
sons. But  I  got  out  of  there,  and  stole  into  the  cham- 
ber. I  took  my  seat  at  mother's  side.  She  and  Cousin 
Jane  were  talking  about  many  things  that  had  hap- 
pened; and,  among  other  things,  my  mother  asked  her, 
how  long  it  had  been  since  she  was  there.  She  said  : 
"  It  has  been  eighteen  years  since  I  came."  "  Well,  I 
thought  it  had  been  eighteen  years  since  you  were  here 
before,"  replied  mother.  And  so  they  went  on  talking 
about  one  thing  and  another  until  bed-time  came.  Next 
morning  I  was  on  my  way  to  school  with  my  brother, 
and  didn't  know  my  lesson.  I  shall  never  forget  my 
school-teacher,  Mr.  Shelton  ;  he  was  a  lean,  lank,  tall, 
black-eyed  man,  about  as  big  as  a  fence  rail,  but  not 
quite  as  tall.  lie  was  the  laziest  man  I  think  I  have 
ever  known  in  my  life.  He  would  sit  over  three  or 
four  chairs  at  once — part  of  him  in  each  chair.  He 
didn't  wear  suspenders,  and  when  he  was  stretched  over 
those  chairs,  with  his  coat  tails  hanging  down,  he 
seemed,  about   the   middle,  to   have  come   uncoupled.^ 


LECTURES.  187 

He  commenced  to  hear  our  lesson — gave  out  word  after 
word;  but  when  he  came  to  me,  I  would  miss  it  every 
time.  Warm  waves  seemed  to  be  passing  through  my 
system,  and  the  perspiration  would  break  out  on  my 
brow  every  time  he  asked  me  to  spell  a  word,  and  I 
would  miss  it.  "Next!"  he  would  call  out.  By-and- 
by  he  threw  the  book  into  my  lap  and  said  :  "  Get  that 
lesson  in  play-time,  sir  !"  Well,  I  was  down  then !  I 
thought  the  next  thing  would  be  a  whipping,  and  I 
knew  I  would  get  another  one  when  I  got  home.  Let 
me  say  here  to  the  credit  and  the  good  heart  of  my 
school-teachers  and  my  father,  I  never  had  a  whipping 
in  my  life.  It  wasn't  that  I  did  not  deserve  it,  though. 
"Well,  play-time  came,  and  Mr.  Shelton  had  to  go  sever- 
al hundred  yards  to  his  dinner.  The  thought  struck 
me,  soon  after  he  had  left  the  school-house,  why  it  was 
I  had  missed  the  lesson,  and  I  concluded  I  would  run 
and  overtake  him,  and  tell  him.  I  was  soon  at  his 
side,  looking  up  into  his  face.  "Mr.  Shelton  !  Mr. 
Shelton!"  said  I,  "I'll  tell  you  why  I  missed  my  les- 
son to-day."  "Well,  sir,  what  was  the  reason?"  "A 
cousin  of  my  mother's  came  last  night  from  Missouri, 
and  I  hadn't  seen  her  for  eighteen  years,  and  I  was 
listening  to  her  talking!"  He  looked  down  into  my 
face,  and  commenced  to  laugh;  for  I  was  only  eight 
years  old,  and  I  >vas  in  dead  earnest.  Mother  had  said 
it  was  eighteen  years,  and  I  thought  if  mother  had  not 
seen  her  for  eighteen  years,  I  hadn't.  "  Well,  sir,  you 
need  not  stay  in  play-time,"  said  he.     I  was  UP  then 


188  PULPIT,    PEW  AND    PLATFORM. 

and  all  right  !  You  can  imagine  my  embarrassment 
when,  a  few  days  after  that,  he  went  home  to  spend  the 
evening  with  us,  and  told  the  joke  on  me  in  the  pres- 
ence of  the  whole  family.  I  discovered  then,  for  the 
first  time,  the  mistake ;  but  it  had  saved  me  from  stay- 
ing in  play-time,  and  I  did  not  care. 

THE    UPS   AND    DOWNS   OF   YOUTH. 

When  we  grow  out  of  childhood  and  get  old  enough 
to  work,  \vc  begin  to  have  some  ups  and  downs  in  real 
life.  It  seems  to  me  that  in  my  boyhood  days  we  used 
to  go  to  school  pretty  much  the  whole  year  round.  The 
session  at  the  Old  Field  School-house  lasted  about  ten 
months,  and  our  sisters,  at  home,  taught  us  the  other 
two,  to  keep  us  from  forgetting  what  we  had  learned, 
before  the  next  session  began.  With  my  natural  repug- 
nance to  the  school  system  generally,  I  was  always 
seeking  some  excuse  to  get  off.  I  had  a  good  opportu- 
nity on  one  occasion  when  harvest  time  came.  You 
know  the  old  Virginia  harvest  field  is  a  busy  place; 
every  man,  woman  and  child  on  the  farm  is  expected 
to  take  a  hand  then.  But  my  father,  being  anxious 
that  his  children  should  get  an  education  (for  he  always 
said  that  the  only  fortune  he  cared  to  leave  us  was  an 
education  that  would  enable  us  to  get  through  the 
world),  he  would  not  compel  us  to  go  into  the  field  at 
any  time.  I  insisted,  on  this  occasion,  that  he  should 
let  me  go  into  the  harvest  field.  I  told  him  that  I  had 
a  broad-brimmed  hat  and  a  pair  of  half-hand  gloves, 


LECTURES.  189 

and  that  I  could  take  the  place  of  a  hand  and  tote 
wheat  after  the  raker.  We  did  not  have  binders  then ; 
but,  after  each  cradler,  there  was  a  raker,  and  after  the 
raker,  the  toter.  Well,  father  said  to  me:  "Son,  you 
had  better  go  on  to  school!''  Ah!  how  long  it  takes 
for  a  boy  to  learn  that  he  doesn't  know  more  than  his 
father!  Sometimes  we  get  to  be  grown  men,  and  quite 
old  at  that,  and  have  to  learn  it  by  bitter  experience. 
There  is  a  good  deal  of  truth  in  that  old  couplet : 

"Youns  folks  think  old  folks  are  fools; 
Old  folks  know  young  folks  are  fools." 

I  insisted,  and  father  consented.  It  was  a  beautiful 
morning,  and  I  went  running  along  to  the  harvest  field, 
— my  shirt  with  just  one  button  at  the  collar,  and  open 
at  the  bosom  to  let  in  the  cool  morning  air  upon  my 
naked  breast;  and  I  was  running  and  capering  like  a 
lamb.  Ah,  I  was  up  then  !  Soon  I  reached  the  har- 
vest field.  The  golden  grain  was  waving  its  invita- 
tions, as  if  to  say :  "  Come  and  gather  me,  and  I  will 
repay  you  for  your  toil."  They  did  not  have  patent 
reapers  in  those  days,  making  that  discordant  and  un- 
pleasant clatter  —  clatter — clatter — clatter  —  clatter  — 
clatter — all  over  the  field ;  but  it  was  the  scythe  and 
the  cradle.  A  dozen  men  or  more,  standing  side  by 
side,  with  the  cradle  turned  up  on  the  sneed,  and  with 
their  whet-boards  making  music  on  the  blade — getting 
ready  to  thrust  it  into  the  ripened  grain.  By-and-bye 
the  work  begins.  Every  man  strikes  in  at  the  same 
time,  and  the  ringing  blades  over  the  stubble  made  the 


190  PULPIT,    PEW   AND    PLATFORM. 

sweetest  music.  Oh,  what  music!  Don't  you  hear  it 
now?  The  rakers  busy, — every  one  lively,  cheerful, 
happy!     Hear  them,  as  they  sing  : 

"Cool  water,  cool  water  from  the  cool,  cool  spring." 

I  was  running,  carrying  bundle  after  bundle  of 
wheat,  and  throwing  it  down  at  the  foot  of  the  shock ; 
and  back  again  after  another  bundle.  Presently,  I 
stopped — felt  a  thousand  things  sticking  in  my  breast 
— pulled  open  my  shirt  bosom,  and  the  wheat  beards 
were  just  penetrating  my  skin!  I  thought:  "My  pa- 
tience alive!  what's  all  this?"  But  on  I  must  go;  and 
the  work  went  on,  and  on,  and  on!  The  novelty  wore 
off;  the  interest  ceased ;  the  toil  increased.  I  was  wet 
with  perspiration,  and  still  the  work  went  on!  I  looked 
back  at  my  father,  who  was  riding  along  on  his  horse, 
looking  calmly  on  as  the  work  was  rapidly  progressing. 
I  thought:  "Well,  surely  my  father  is  the  happiest 
man  in  the  world."  Oh,  it  seemed  to  me  that  it  was 
heaven  upon  earth  just  to  be  sitting  on  a  horse,  looking 
at  others  work  !  And  still  the  work  went  on.  After  a 
long  time,  twelve  o'clock  came,  and  we  gathered  under 
the  shade,  drank  the  cool  water,  ate  the  delightful  meal 
with  a  keen  relish,  cooled  off.  My  limbs  were  sore 
and  tired;  every  muscle  quivered  with  fatigue.  I  went 
to  father,  and  said:  "  Father,  I  think  I  will  go  back  to 
the  house."  "  Xo,  sir,"  said  he;  "stick  to  your  busi- 
u  iss,  my  boy.  Don't  go  bark!"  I  tell  you,  I  was 
down   then!     I  went  slowly  out  to  the  work,  in  the 


LECTURES.  191 

burning  hot  sun,  and  the  heat  was  rising  from  the  field 
as  I  have  seen  it  rise  from  the  stove  in  the  winter  time ; 
but  I  must  go  on  with  the  work.  I  looked  up  at  the 
sun  again  and  again.  It  seemed  to  me  that  another 
Joshua  had  come  into  the  world,  and  commanded  the 
sun  to  stand  still!  He  didn't  seem  to  budge  an  inch, 
but  was  just  pouring  the  heat  down  in  bucketfnls  upon 
me.  "Oh  I"  I  thought,  "  will  the  sun  never  go  down?" 
But,  after  a  long,  long  day,  the  suu  went  down,  and  we 
turned  our  steps  homeward.  The  harvesters  were  sing- 
ing their  merry  song.  I  had  all  that  I  could  do  to  get 
home.  The  next  morning  my  father  said,  early:  "Well, 
my  son,  will  you  go  into  the  harvest  field  again  to-day?" 
"  No,  sir,"  said  I ;  "  I  reckon  I  had  better  go  back  to 
school;  I'm  afraid  I  might  get  behind  with  my  les- 
sons." I  got  enough  out  of  the  harvest  field  that  day 
to  last  me  a  life-time.  Ups  and  downs  I  tell  yon,  but 
mostly  downs. 

Then,  the  boys  and  girls  have  their 

UPS   AND   DOWNS   IN   COURTING. 

About  the  hardest  loving  in  the  world  is  when  a  boy 
and  a  girl  fall  in  love.  Now,  somebody  will  say,  "  Oh, 
pshaw  ! — he  is  going  to  talk  about  love, — I  wish  I 
hadn't  come!"  Well,  my  friend,  probably  nobody 
ever  loved  you  ;  but,  I  guarantee,  if  you  will  be  right 
honest  about  it,  you  have  loved  somebody. 

"  In  joyous  youth,  what  soul  hath  never  known 
Thought,  feeling,  taste,  attention  to  its  o*n? 


192  PULPIT,    PEW  AND    PLATFORM. 

Who  has  nol  paused  while  beauty's  pensive  eye 

Asked  from  his  heart  the  homage  <>!'  a  sigh '/ 
Who  lias  not  lilt,  with  rapture-smitten  frame 
TIil-  {lower  of  grace,  the  magic  of  a  name  ?  " 

Yes,  we  have  all  had  our  ups  and  downs  of  love  ! 
Why,  I  remember  the  first  time  I  ever  fell  in  love  :  I 
was  about  ten  years  old,  and  I  fell  in  love  with  a  woman 
about  thirty.  I  loved  her,  dear  me  !  how  I  loved  her  ! 
and  when  she  would  put  her  arms  around  me  ami  kiss 
me,  wasn't  I  happy  !  It  just  thrilled  my  whole  being 
like  lightning  had  struck  me.  There  was  a  man  came 
courting  her,  and  I  used  to  think  :  "If  I  could  just  get 
that  fellow  out  somewhere — I  would  put  an  end  to 
him  \"     We've  all  been  along  there. 

Then,  when  a  fellow  gets  in  the  gosling  state.  Of  all 
things  in  this  world  that  a  girl  despises  and  a  boy  hates, 
it  is  to  be  in  the  gosling  state,  when  he  talks  with  two 
voices — is  not  certain  which  he  is  going  to  strike — high 
or  low,  and  sometimes  both  at  once.  There  was  a  fellow 
at  school  once,  and  the  boys  worried  him  half  out  of  his 
life  Finally,  he  rolled  up  his  sleeves,  and  walked  out 
and  said,  "  Anybody  that  says  1  talk  with  two  voices, 
tells  a  lie!"  The  first  half  of  the  sentence  spoken  in 
grave,  low  tones,  the  last  half,  in  the  highest  falsetto 
ley. 
THE   UPS  AND  DOWNS  OF  MANHOOD  AND  WOMANHOOD. 

1 1  is  t hen  that  we  enter  life  iu  real  earnest.  Every  man 
here  has  had  his  ups  and  downs  in  business,  if  he  has  had 
any  business  at  all.     There  are  some  people  in  the  world 


LECTURES.  1'93 

who  seem  to  be  blessed  all  the  time  ;  everything  they 
touch  turns  to  good  account.  Others  seem  to  have  been 
born  under  an  unlucky  star.  A  man  said  to  me  once  : 
"  I  have  a  wife  and  four  children.  I  have  tried  hard 
to  support  them  ;  again  and  again  I  have  failed  in 
life.  It  seems  to  me,  I  am  predestinated  to  be  a  poor 
man."  Some  of  the  greatest  successes  in  this  world 
have  been  made  by  men,  who  at  the  first,  sank  low  in 
the  scale  of  misfortune.  They  were  down  ;  not  only 
down,  but  underneath  a  burden — a  burden  heavy  and 
apparently  immovable.  Others  again  have  failed,  and 
have  gone  down   in  their  failure  to  rise  again  no  more. 

When  men  and  women  get  to  courting,  they  have 
their  ups  and  downs.  A  man  makes  up  his  mind  that 
it  is  not  good  for  him  to  be  alone  ;  he  determines  that 
he  must  have  a  companion.  He  goes  out  into  the  world 
to  seek  a  suitable  one,  who  will  double  his  joys  and 
divide  his  sorrows;  but,  I  tell  you,  he  sometimes  has  a 
pretty  rough  time  in  getting  her.  I  heard  of  an  old 
Presbyterian  preacher  once  who  fell  in  love  with  a 
maiden  lady,  about  sixty  years  of  age.  The  old  man 
had  lived  a  long  life  as  a  bachelor — probably  had  not 
done  much  courting.  He  was  really  in  love,  and  could 
not  express  himself — he  could  not  tell  about  it.  It  is  a 
right  hard  thing  to  do  sometimes,  if  you  do  love  a 
woman,  to  tell  her  so.  Well,  the  young  ladies  about  the 
house  thought  they  would  listen  to  that  courtship;  but, 
every  time  they  listened,  nothing  was  said.  He  and  the 
old  lady  would  sit  before  the  fire,  side  by  side,  and  not 

13 


104  PULPIT,    PEW  AND    PLATFORM. 

a  word  touching  the  great  burden  of  his  heart.  Bye- 
and-bye,  however,  the  old  fellow  faced  the  music.     The 

young  ladies  were  listening  and  watching  ;  he  moved 
up  close  to  the  unsophisticated  miss,  and  said  to  her  : 
"  Martha  !  Martha  !  if  you  love  me — hug  me  !  If  you 
d011't — throw  me  behind  the  fire  !  "  She  hugged  him, 
and  all  was  well.     He  was  up,  then. 

Sometimes  men  have  peculiar  troubles.  There  was 
a  man  who  was  a  great  stammerer,  and  his  sweetheart 
tokl  him  that  she  would  not  marry  him  unless  he  cured 
himself.  So  he  went  to  the  doctor,  and  the  doctor 
told  him  just  to  whistle  every  time  he  was  about  to 
stammer,  and  that  would  cure  him.  So  he  attempted 
it,  and  at  every  other  word  he  not  only  stammered,  but 
whistled  also.  One  day  he  met  another  stammerer,  and 
asked  him  why  he  didn't  get  cured,  and  told  him  the 
whole  story;  that  his  sweetheart  would  not  marry  him 
unless  he  could  cure  himself  of  stammering;  and  that 
he  went  to  the  doctor,  and  that  the  doctor  had  told  him 
to  whistle  every  time  he  felt  like  stammering,  and  he 
said:  "I  tried  it,  and  was  cured  entirely."  "Well," 
Baid  the  other  stammerer,  "  did  your  sweetheart  have 
you  ?"  "  No,"  said  he,  "  for  she  said  that  every  time  I 
talked  I  reminded  her  of  an  old  wheelbarrow  that 
i ded  greasing."     He  was  down. 

There  are 

THE    UTS    AND    DOWNS    OF    MARRIED    RIFE. 

If   there  is  anything  on  this  earth    near   akin    to 


LECTURES.  lit") 

heaven,  it  is  the  home  of  the  happily  married  pair. 
Oliver  Wendell  Holmes  said  he  had  seen  a  magnificent 
ship  go  out  from  the  harbor  without  a  sail  up,  and  he 
said:  "  What  moves  that  splendid  ship?  she  has  not  a 
sail  kissing  the  breeze  ;  she  is  not  a  steamer ;  what 
makes  her  move  with  all  her  freight?"  Then,  looking 
around  on  the  other  side,  he  has  seen  a  little  tug,  nest- 
ling close  beside  her,  and  moving  that  great  ship  out  to 
sea.  So  he  has  seen  men  in  this  world  succeed,  and 
succeed  grandly  ;  he  has  wondered  why  it  was.  They 
were  not  men  of  genius — not  men  of  any  particular 
energy  or  industry.  Why  was  it  they  succeeded  so 
wonderfully?  It  was  the  little  woman  at  home,  who, 
by  her  counsel,  her  cheering  words,  her  loving  hand, 
had  moved  him  out  of  the  harbor  upon  the  great  ocean 
of  life,  a  successful  man. 

I  tell  you,  the  man  who  has  chosen  a  suitable  part- 
ner— oue  who  thinks  as  he  thinks — whose  aim  in  life 
is  to  make  him  happy,  while  he,  at  the  same  time,  uses 
his  best  endeavor  to  supply  her  every  need,  that  man  is 
happy  in  life. 

Then  you  see  him  again,  about  one  o'clock  some 
night,  walking  the  floor  in  the  dark,  singing  as  he 
walks,  "  Bye-bye,  little  baby,  bye-bye,  little  baby,  bye.',, 
"  Oh,  my  !  I  wish  you  would  get  up,  wife,  and  take 
this  child  !  I  have  been  working  hard  all  day.  I  am 
so  sleepy,  and  he  won't  stop  crying."  "  No,"  indeed,  his 
wife  says,  "your  child  as  well  as  mine."  And  he  walks 
on  singing.     Presently  he  screams  out,  at  the  top  of  his 


19G  PULPIT,    PEW   AND    PLATFORM. 

voice,  waking  up  everything  in  the  house:  "Oh,  good- 
ness alive,  I've  .-tuck  a  tack  in  my  foot!  "  Poor  fellow, 
he's  down  then. 

And  then,  when  you  miss  getting  just  the  right  one 
— when  you  find  one  who  will  have  her  own  way  at 
all  times,  and  under  all  circumstances,  like  the  man  I 
knew  once.  He  married  a  woman,  and  she  had  a 
voice — you  could  hear  her  all  over  the  neighborhood 
when  she  was  quarreling.  She  made  him  lively  on  all 
occasions.  One  day  I  met  him  on  the  street ;  he  was 
pretty  drunk.  I  said,  "Hello,  what's  the  matter?" 
He  said,  "  I'm  worse  off  than  Job."  "  Worse  off  than 
Job!  how's  that?"  "  Well,  the  Lord  told  the  devil 
that  he  might  do  certain  things  with  Job,  but  he  re- 
stricted him  in  certain  other  things;  but  he  has  just 
turned  the  devil  loose  on  me."  Well,  it  was  true,  that 
poor  fellow  knew  what  it  was  to  suffer  the  downs  of 
married  life. 

THE    UPS    AND    DOWNS    OF    EATING. 

Some  people  have  no  more  control  over  their  appe- 
tite than  they  have  over  which  way  the  wind  is  going 
to  blow.  Just  give  them  a  plenty  of  good  things  to 
eat,  and  they  will  sit  down  and  cat,  and  eat,  and  eat, 
until  they  can  eat  no  more.  They  are  up,  then.  You 
could  not  please  them  better  than  to  spread  a  feast  be- 
fore them.  But  wait  till  to-morrow  ;  they  are  so  cross 
you  don't  like  to  come  anywhere  in  sight  of  them  ;  you 
cannot  get  a  civil  answer.     They  are  not  fit  for  busi- 


LECTURES.  197 

ness,  and  it  is  very  uncomfortable  to  have  anything  to 
do  with  them.  "  Good-morning,"  you  say  to  them, 
"how  are  you  this  morning?"  "Got  the  dyspepsia 
this  morning — not  feeling  well — everything  looks  very 
blue  to  me."  Yes,  I  reckon  it  does;  the  man  has 
been  eating  a  whole  lot  of  ham  and  fried  oysters,  and 
other  things  too  numerous  to  mention,  and  nature  has 
simply  lifted  her  voice  of  warning. 

Some  people  eat  like  they  say  they  used  to  eat  in 
North  Carolina.  There  was  a  song  I  heard  in  my  boy- 
hood days  about  the  North  Carolinians: 

"  Oh,  they  bakes  clam  pie — over  thar  ! 
Oh,  they  bakes  clam  pie,  and  the  crust  is  made  of  rye, 
And  you  eat  that  or  die — over  thar ! 
Oh,  the  taters  they  grow  small — over  thar! 
Oh,  the  taters  they  grow  small,  and  they  plants 'em  in  the  fall, 
And  they  eats  'em,  tops  and  all — over  thar  !  " 

Any  man  who  would  eat  that  way  deserves  to  be  down  ! 
And  yet  you  find  them,  at  every  table — in  every  neigh- 
borhood. 

Then,  too,  there  are 

THE   UPS  AND   DOWNS   OF   DRINKING. 

Give  a  man  two  or  three  drinks — oh,  he  is  up !  He 
is  just  the  richest  man  in  the  whole  community  !  Fight ! 
why,  he  would  fight  his  weight  in  wild  cats!  Talk! 
He  would  be  willing  to  address  the  most  learned  assem- 
bly on  earth,  on  any  topic— earthly  or  heavenly;  it 
would  make  no  difference  to  him  ;  just  give  him  two  or 
three  drinks  ! 


198  pulpit,  pew  and  platform. 

There  once  lived  a  good  old  soul,  who  was  a  strict 
member  of  the  church,  and  never  took  anything  to  drink 
at  all  that  anybody  knew  of.  It  was  the  habit  of  the 
people,  who  lived  in  that  community,  to  put  their  cattle 
up  in  the  mountains  during  the  spring,  and  bring  them 
back,  down  into  the  valley,  in  the  fall.  This  old  gen- 
tleman had  a  few  head  of  cattle.  He  went  off  into  the 
mountains  one  day  in  the  fall  to  drive  them  down  home. 
They  used  to  call  him  "  Uncle  Zekiel."  After  he  hail 
been  hunting  through  the  mountains  for  several  hours, 
he  found  his  cattle,  and  was  on  his  way  home.  He 
came  by  one  of  those  little  tea  kettle  still  houses  that 
they  have  in  the  mountains,  and  the  keeper  of  it  said, 
'•Uncle  Zekiel,  you  look  tired;  won't  you  have  some- 
thing to  drink  ?"  "  No,"  said  the  old  man  ;  "  I  never 
drink  anything."  "Oh,  but  a  little  would  do  you 
good."  "  Xii,  I  am  a  member  of  the  church,  and  I  try 
to  live  the  right  sort  of  life:  vou  must  excuse  me — I 
don't  drink  anything."  "  Well,  but,  Uncle  Zekiel,  you 
must  take  a  little  as  a  medicine — you  need  it."  "All 
right ;  give  me  just  a  swallow.  Maybe  it  might  help 
me  a  little."  So  he  took  a  little  of  the  red-hot  brandy, 
strong  as  aqua  for  tis !  By  and  by  the  old  man  said: 
"  Let  me  taste  a  little  more  of  that."  Took  some  more. 
After  awhile  he  said,  "  I  believe  I'll  take  Another  sip  of 
that  brandy;  it  seems  to  do  me  good."  Then  the  old 
fellow  felt  it.  Says  he,  "  I've  got  some  mighty  good 
cattle  here — finest  cattle  in  this  country.  I've  got  a 
fine  farm  down  there  in  the  valley ;  one  of  the  best 


LECTURES.  199 

wives  that  ever  live  J.  I  tell  you,  if  they  say  old 
Zekiel  ain't  well  off,  they're  mightily  mistaken.  I've 
got  plenty  of  it — plenty  of  it — plenty  of  it !  I  don't 
ask  odds  of  any  man ;  give  me  a  little  more  of  that 
brandy."  He  drained  the  cup.  "Ah,  I  tell  you,  I 
feel  first  rate!  Well,  now,  let  me  go.  Where's  my 
cattle?"  The  cattle  had  all  gone  off  grazing  in  the 
mountain.  "  Well,  I  don't  care;  got  plenty  of  'em  at 
home."  Away  he  went,  down  the  mountain  (he  was  up 
then),  as  happy  as  a  king.  After  a  while,  the  effects  of 
the  brandy  wore  off  somewhat.  He  laid  down  in  the 
fence  corner,  and  went  to  sleep.  The  rain  came  on.  He 
awoke;  looked  at  himself:  "I  wonder  who  this  is,"  he 
says.  "  It  ain't  Zekiel.  But,  if  it  ain't  Zekiel,  I  won- 
der who  it  is  !  I  know  what  I'll  do,  I'll  go  home  and 
ask  the  old  lady.  If  she  says  it's  Zekiel,  it  is  Zekiel, 
and  if  she  says  it  ain't  Zekiel,  it  ain't  Zekiel.'  So,  he 
went  home.  The  latch-string  was  on  the  door.  The 
old  man  pulled  the  string,  and  away  he  went  right  out 
into  the  middle  of  the  floor.  The  old  lady  came  and 
looked  at  him.  Who  is  this?  Oh,  my,  that  ain't  my 
Zekiel !  "  There,  now,"  said  the  old  man,  "  I  said  it 
wasn't  Zekiel,  and  I  ain't  Zekiel  neither  ;  and  if  it  ain't, 
I  don't  know  who  it  is."  This  drink  business  gets  a 
man  down  pretty  soon  after  he  gets  up. 

Two  fellows  got  drunk  once,  and  they  were  boarding 
at  the  same  house,  but  had  two  different  beds  in  the 
room.  When  they  went  in  it  was  dark,  and  they 
couldn't  find  the  matches;  so  they  went  to  bed  the  best 


200  PULPIT,    PEW    AND    PLATFORM. 

way  they  could.  Each  thought  he  had  gone  into  his 
own  bed;  but,  instead  of  that,  they  both  got  into  the 
same  bed.  Out-  said  to  the  other,  "John  !  "  "  Hello!" 
"  There's  somebody  in  the  bed  with  me."  "  Well,"  the 
other  said,  "  there's  somebody  in  the  bed  with  me  too.'' 
"Let's  kick 'em  out!"  "All  right."  And  at  it  they 
went,  kicking  each  other.  Presently  one  said  to  the 
other,  "  John  !  "  "  Hello  !  "  "  I've  kicked  mine  out." 
"  Well,"  he  said,  "  mine's  kicked  me  out."  Ups  and 
downs  of  drinking. 

The  one  is  only  imaginary,  and  lasts  for  a  very  short 
time  ;  the  other  is  real,  and  may  last  forever.  The  man 
who  is  down,  under  the  burden  of  this  cursed  evil,  has 
no  hope  of  deliverance,  except  in  the  arm  of  God- 
There  are  some  here  to-night  whose  bitter  experience 
tells  them  that,  though  at  the  first,  the  effects  of  strong 
drink  are  exhilarating,  and  seem  to  elevate  us  in  our 
whole  natures,  yet,  in  truth,  it  is  but  a  delusion  of  the 
devil — it  is  the  bite  of  the  serpent,  the  sting  of  the  adder 
— and  brings  with  it  poison,  death,  destruction.  Oh, 
friend,  if  you  have  only  begun  to  trifle  with  this  dread- 
ful temptation,  let  me  bog  of  you,  that  Avhile  it  is  yet  in 
your  power,  you  stay  the  hand  that  is  already  uplifted 
to  strike  you  down  forever. 

1  might  go  on  to  mention  other  of  tic  ups  and  downs 
(.('  life,  and  thus  consume  the  whole  time  which  your 
kind  patience  will  allow  me  here;  but  there  is  another 
and  a  practical  turn  T  wish  to  give  this  lecture,  and 
that  is: 


LECTURES.  201 

HOW   TO   TAKE   THESE   UPS   AND   DOWNS. 

It  may  sound  very  commonplace,  but  my  advice  to 
you  is:  "Take  them  as  you  come  to  them."  Nine- 
tenths  of  the  people  in  this  world  are  always  looking 
for  trouble  ahead.  Our  Saviour  has  laid  down  the 
right  principle,  "  Sufficient  unto  the  day  is  the  evil 
thereof."  Don't  build  "air  castles  !"  and  "don't  cross 
the  bridge  until  you  get  in  the  neighborhood  of  it,  any- 
way." Those  broken-hearted  women  in  Scripture  had 
enough  to  be  troubled  with  without  perplexing  them- 
selves with  the  question,  "  Who  shall  roll  away  the 
stone?"  Let  us  learn  by  the  ups  and  downs  of  life! 
An  old  colored  man  said  to  me  once :  "  Ah,  sir,  a  man 
learns  a  deal  more  when  he's  down  than  when  he's  up ! " 
If  we  could  only  learn  by  these  experiences,  we  should 
be  the  better  prepared  to  take  them  as  they  come. 

A  steamboat  was  stranded  on  the  Mississippi  River, 
and  the  captain  could  not  get  her  off.  He  was  adver- 
tising for  pilots,  but  none  of  them  seemed  to  be  able  to 
do  the  work.  Eventually  a  hard-looking  fellow  came 
on  board  and  said:  "Captain,  I  understand  you  want  a 
pilot  to  take  you  out  of  this  difficulty  ?"  The  captain 
said,  "Are  you  a  pilot?"  "Well,  they  call  me  one." 
"  Do  you  know  where  the  snags  and  sand-bars  are?" 
"  No,  sir."  "  Well,  how  do  you  expect  to  take  me  out 
of  here  if  you  don't  know  where  the  snags  and  sand-bars 
are  ?  "     "I  know  where  they  ain't !  "  was  the  reply. 

If  we  have  gone  certain  paths  m  life,  and  have  fallen 


202  PULPIT,    PEW   AND    PLATFORM. 

down  a  few  times,  we  shall  know  how  to  avoid  them  in 
future — if  we  only  will. 

The  downs  of  life  teach  humility;  they  exercise  our 
energy,  bring  us  to  the  test,  and  tell  whether  we  have 
any  grit  in  us  or  not.  Let  us  take  them  as  we  come  to 
them,  whether  prosperity  or  adversity,  and  we  shall  be 
prepared  for  life's  battle  day  by  day. 

You  remember  the  old  story  of  the  three  soldiers, 
chosen  on  a  side,  to  decide  a  great  conflict  between  two 
armies.  The  six  men  met.  The  great  armies  were  drawn 
up  in  line  ofbattle  on  each  side.  The  struggle  was  severe. 
Two  of  the  three  on  one  side  fell  dead.  One  only  was  left 
to  contend  with  the  other  three.  So  he  commenced 
to  fall  back  a  few  steps  in  order  to  separate  the  three 
men,  who  endeavored  to  pursue  him.  One  by  one  they 
started  off  to  follow  him,  and  he  turned  upon  them,  one 
at  a  time,  amid  the  shouts  of  his  army,  and  killed  each 
one  of  the  three.  Let  us  take  the  ups  and  downs  of  life 
day  by  day,  hour  by  hour,  and  we  shall  find  at  the 
close  that  it  was  not  so  bad  as  we  supposed. 

Again,  let  me  advise  that  we 

STUDY   OURSELVES. 

It  is  not  a  very  pleasant  study,  this  introspection — 
looking  into  one's  heart  and  mind  and  life — but  it  is 
very  necessary  that  we  should  know  what  we  cannot  do, 
as  well  as  what  we  can  do.  The  talents  we  have  are 
the  instruments  that  God  has  given  us  to  carve  out  our 
life's  work ;  and   if  the  carpenter  does  not  know  what 


LECTURES.  203 

use  to  make  of  the  tools  that  he  has  he  will  be  a  poor 
builder  indeed.  You  would  not  try  to  run  a  race  with 
a  steam  engine ;  neither  would  you  undertake  to  turn  a 
big  house  upside  down.  You  know  your  physical 
strength;  but  very  few  of  us  know  our  mental  ability, 
and  therefore  we  encounter  things  that  prove  too  much 
for  us,  and  then  we  are  flat  on  our  backs ;  we  learn, 
when  it  is  too  late,  that  if  we  had  only  stopped  to  think 
we  would  never  have  gone  into  the  struggle. 

CONTROL   YOURSELF 

is  another  word,  if  you  will  allow  me  to  continue  my  ad- 
vice. These  energies,  and  passions,  and  impulses  that 
God  has  given  us  are  fiery  steeds,  and  if  we  hold  the 
lines,  and  keep  them  under  control,  we  shall  drive  on  to 
our  destination  in  triumph.  Let  them  get  away  from  you 
once,  and  a  general  smash-up  will  be  the  result. 

A  general,  with  an  army,  cannot  hope  to  win  a  vic- 
tory if  he  goes  into  the  struggle  in  disorder  and  con- 
fusion. He  must  march  in  with  his  companies,  and 
regiments,  and  brigades,  and  have  them  all  under  good 
control  and  discipline  if  he  would  hope  to  win  the  fight. 

LEARN   TO   SAY   NO. 

Learn  to  keep  your  hand  always  upon  the  bridle  of 
passion.  The  steam  in  an  engine  is  a  good  thing  if 
kept  under  control,  but  a  very  bad  thing  if  it  get  the 
upper  hand  of  the  engineer.  And  the  same  hand  that 
holds  you  back  when  you  would  go  in  a  wrong  direc- 
tion must  urge  you  forward  when  heart  fails,  and  limbs 


20  1  PULPIT,    PEW   AND    PL  ITFORM. 

are  weary,  and  hauds  are  tired.  It  is  a  fine  thing  hr  a 
man  to  lie  in  bed  late  of  a  morning,  but  he  Deeds  the 
hand  of  energy  to  urge  him  out  into  the  battle  of  life 
again.  A  good  many  of  us  are  like  the  little  boy  whose 
father  called  him,  one  morning,  and  said:  ".John! 
John  !  the  early  bird  catches  the  worm  !  "  "  Well,  let 
him  have  him,  I  don't  want  him!" 

I  heard  of  a  man  once  who  went  to  a  town  and  said 
he  was  going  to  give  a  dollar  to  the  laziest  man  he  could 
find  in  the  town.  Tin;  first  man  he  came  to  was  sitting 
on  the  curb-stone.  He  had  no  hat  and  no  shoes.  lie 
said  to  him,  "Where's  your  hat?"  "Haven't  any." 
'•  Where  arc  your  shoes?"  "  Never  had  any."  "  Why 
don't  you  go  to  work  and  get  yourself  shoes?" 
"  Never  worked  in  my  life — don't  expect  to  work." 
"  Well,  I  am  looking  for  the  laziest  man  in  the  town — 
I  want  to  give  him  a  dollar."  "All  right,  hand  it  to 
me."  "No,  I  think  I  will  look  a  little  further  on,  and 
see  if  I  cannot  find  a  lazier  man  than  you  are."  lb' 
went  a  little  further,  and  saw  a  man  sitting  right  flat 
down  on  the  sidewalk,  no  hat,  no  shoes,  no  coat.  "  Well, 
my  good  fellow,  what  are  you  doing  here?  "  "  Sitting 
down."  "  Why  don't  you  get  up?  "  "  Don't  want  to  , 
takes  too  much  effort."  "  Why  don't  you  go  out  and 
go  to  work  ?"  "  I  don't  work."  "  What's  the  reason?" 
"Well,  I  don't  know;  some  people  say  it's  lack  of 
energy,  but  I  think  it's  love  of  ease."  "  Well,  I  am 
looking  for  the  laziest  man  in  town,  I  am  going  to  give 
him   a  dollar."     "  All  right  ;  I  reckon  I'm  the  man." 


LECTURES.  205 

"  Well,  I'll  look  a  little  further  on,  anyhow."  So  he 
went  on  a  square  or  two  further,  and  there  lay  a  man, 
right  flat  down  on  the  ground,  on  his  face.  "  Hallo, 
here  !  "  he  said.  "  Halio  !  "  "  Say,  I  want  to  talk  to  you." 
"  Well,  talk  on."  "  I'm  looking  for  the  laziest  man  iu 
town  ;  I've  got  a  dollar  for  him."  "  All  right,  turn  me 
over  and  put  it  in  my  pocket."  Now  that  man  was  lazy, 
indeed  ;  and  while  none  of  us  here  may  have  it  as  bad 
as  that,  still,  I  have  no  doubt,  we  all  have  a  little  touch 
of  it ;  and,  if  we  have  ourselves  under  control,  we  will 
not  only  use  this  control  to  restrain,  but  also  to  impel, 
when  necessary. 

"  Not  enjoyment,  and  not  sorrow 
Is  our  destined  end  or  way  ; 
But  to  act,  that  each  to-morrow 
Find  us  farther  than  to  day." 

Again, 

HAVE  AN   OBJECT   IN   LIFE. 

What  sort  of  a  painter  would  he  be,  who  would  stand 
before  his  canvas  daubing  on  the  paint,  and  you  would 
say  to  him,  "  What  are  you  painting  ?  "  "  Well,  I 
don't  know  what  it's  going  to  be ;  it  may  come  out  a 
ship,  it  may  come  out  a  horse — perhaps  a  man — I  don't 
know  what  it  is  going  to  be ;  but  nobody  would  want  it 
anyhow,  whatever  it  is  going  to  be?"  Who  can  hope 
to  succeed  in  life,  and  press  through  the  ups  and 
downs,  to  a  glorious  success,  who  has  no  substantial 
object  in  view  ? 

I  ask  a  man  what  he  is  going  to  do  with  himself. 


206  PULPIT,    PEW    AND    PLATFORM. 

He  s:ivs :  "'  I  don't  know;  I  may  be  a  doctor,  I  may 
1)'  a  lawyer,  or  1  may  be  a  fanner — perhaps  a  merchant 
— don't  know  what   I  am  going  to  be." 

A  man,  who  undertook  to  be  a  blacksmith,  took  a 
piece  of  iron  and  said,  "  1  am  going  to  make  a  horse 
shoe  of  this.  It'  1  spoil  the  horse  shoe,  I'll  make  a 
nail,  anyhow.  If  I  don't  make  the  nail,  I  can  make  a 
Staple."  He  didn't  make  the  staple.  "  Well,"  he  said, 
I  know  what  I  can  make — I  can  make  a  fizz,"  and  he 
thrust  the  red  hot  piece  of  iron  into  a  barrel  of  water, 
and  made  a  noise,  and  that  was  the  end  of  it.  And 
this  is  often  the  case  with  men,  in  this  life  :  they  make 
a  noise,  and  that  is  about  all. 

HAVE    AN    OBJECT    IN    VTEW. 

J.  C.  Calhoun,  while  he  was  at  college,  was  studying 

certain  hooks.  One  of  his  fellow-students  said  to  him, 
"Calhoun,  what  are  yon  reading  these  hooks  for?" 
"They  will  he  of  service  to  me  when  I  am  in  the  Con- 
gress, of  the  United  States,"  was  his  answer. 

Lord  Beaconsfield,  of  England,  when  he  tried  to 
make  his  first  speech  in  the  British  Parliament,  was 
laughed  at,  and  urged  to  take  his  -eat.  He  said,  "  I  will 
sit  down  now,  but  the  time  will  come  when  you  will 
hear  me." 

Campanini,  when  lie  sang  his  first  song  before  an 
Italian  audience,  was  hissed  and  jeered  at  until  he  could 
not  he  heard.  Walking  out  to  the  front  of  the  Btage, 
he  shook    his   fist   in   the  face  of  the  audience,  and  said, 


LECTURES.  207 

"  You  may  laugh  now  ;  but  the  time  will  come  when 
you  won't  laugh."  And  the  time  did  come,  when  the 
whole  world  sat  at  his  feet  and  listened  to  his  songs. 

STICK   TO   YOUR   BUSINESS, 

is  another  suggestion  I  would  respectfully  make.  That 
old  saying,  "  Let  the  shoemaker  stick  to  his  last,"  is  full 
of  wisdom.  True  genius  is  hard  work — systematic 
work.  A  man  who  has  a  good  deal  of  hold  on  in  him, 
is  the  man  who  succeeds. 

"Be  firm.     One  constant  element  of  luck, 
Is  genuine,  solid,  old  Teutonic  pluck. 
Stick  to  your  aim  ;  the  mongrel's  hold  will  slip 
But  only  crowbars  loose  the  bull-dog's  grip. 
Small  though  he  looks,  the  jaw  that  never  yields, 
Brings  down  the  bellowing  monarch  of  the  fields." 

And  yet,  I  would  drop  a  word  of  caution  here.  It  is 
folly  for  any  man  to  stick  to  a  business  in  wlrch  a  man 
has  found  out  it  is  impossible  for  him  to  succeed.  True 
manliness  would  cause  him  to  abandon  that  trade,  occu- 
pation or  profession,  whatever  it  may  be,  and  seek  the 
field  in  which  he  can  raise  his  best  crop.  If  you  have 
started  in  a  business  and  have  been  sticking  to  it  faith- 
fully, but  find  that  it  is  impossible  to  succeed — quit  it. 
Do  like  the  boy  told  Henry  Clay  to  do  with  the  goat. 
Clay  was  walking  down  a  street  in  Nashville,  one  day, 
and  saw  some  boys  playing  with  a  goat.  He  thought 
he  would  take  a  hand  himself.     He  caught  the  goat  by 


208  PULPIT,    PEW    AND    PLATFORM. 

the  horns,  hut  the  goat  was  too  much  for  him,  and  when 
he  was  rearing  and  Clay's  strength  was  failing,  he  said, 
"Boys,  what  must  I  do?  What  must  I  do?"  One 
little  fellow  -aid,  "  Lei  go,  you  fool,  you,  and  run." 

Lt'  you  have  gotten  hold  of  a  profession  or  a  business 
that  is  too  much  for  you,  let  go,  and  run,  and  take  up 
something  else  at  which  you  can  succeed.  But,  if  you 
have  an  occupation  in  which  there  is  a  reasonable  hope 
of  success,  stick  to  it,  and  you  are  bound  to  win. 

BE    BRAVE. 

I  tell  you,  it  takes  a  hrave  man  to  contend  with  the 
Dps  and  downs  of  life.  But  if  you  are  down,  don't 
stay  down.  It  is  not  the  man  who  was  born  on  the  top 
of  the  mountain  that  has  made  the  greatest  success,  but 
the  man  who  has  had  a  mountain  on  top  of  him,  and 
who  has  gotten  up,  by  main  strength,  and  shaken  it  off, 
climbed  up  on  it  and  lets  the  world  know  he's 
there  to  stay.  That's  the  man.  Look  at  the  eagle,  as 
he  sits  on  yonder  ledge  of  rock  !  The  storm  has  beaten 
him  to  the  earth.  Has  he  failed  ?  Look  into  that  eye  ! 
See  him,  as  he  is  drying  his  feathers  !  What  is  he 
doin-?  lie  is  preparing  for  another  flight !  He  has 
no  idea  of  resting  there  with  owls  and  bats  and  barn- 
yard birds.  Bye-and-bye,  he  starts  oul  again,  Hies  into 
the  face  of  the  storm,  rises  with  it  and  above  it  on  his 
journey  to  the  sun. 

Most  of  the  men  who  are  up  high  in  this  world  are 
those    who    have    been  down   very  low;  and  the   very 


LECTURES.  209 

stones  over  which  they  have  stumbled,  have  been  trans- 
formed into  a  stairway  to  glory. 

What   was    it   that   made   Jackson    the  hero  of  the 
Southern  army,  and  the  terrror  of  every  opposing  gen- 
eral?    I   remember  standing   in   my  father's  yard  one 
day,  soon  after  the  battle  of  Cedar  Mountain.     A  Fed- 
eral soldier  told  me  that  Jackson's  name  was  worth  ten 
thousand  men  any  day.     What  was  it  that  enabled  him 
to  march  triumphant  over  every  field  ?     It  is  said  that 
after  his  fight  over  in  the  valley  of  Virginia,  when  he 
encountered  three  armies,  one  at  a  time,  and  came  off 
victorious  from  each   field,  a  crowd  of  Federal  officers 
were  under  a  tree,  and  they  were  talking  about  the  bat- 
tles that  had  just  been  fought.     One  of  them  said,  "  I 
don't    believe   Jackson   is   a  Christian.     If  he  were  a 
Christian  man,  he  would   not  be  shedding  the  blood  of 
his  countrymen  in  such  a  reckless  manner.     One  of  the 
others,  who  had  been  in  the  fight  that  day,  and  had  felt 
the  power  of  Jackson's  arm,  said,  "  Well,  gentlemen,  I 
don't  know  whether  he  is  a  Christian,  or  not,  but  one 
thing  I  know :  if  ever  he  makes  up  his  mind  to  go  to 
heaven,  all  hell  won't  keep  him  out  of  it,  I  know  that." 
His  bravery  is  respected  this  day,  and  he  is  honored  by 
both  armies — North    and  South.     Be   brave.     Ah  !  it 
takes  a  stout   heart  sometimes.     You   will  rise  in  the 
morning  with  headache  and  heartache,  remembering  the 
disasters  of  the  day  before ;  you  will  feel  hardly  equal 
to  the  task,  but  don't  surrender  ;  go  again  into    life's 
great  battle,  and  victory  will  be  yours. 
14 


210  PULPIT,    PEW   AND    PLATFORM. 

Finally— 

TRUST    GOD  ! 

Trust  God!  The  day  will  come  to  yon,  if  von 
have  not  already  seen  it — again  and  again — that  you 
will  not  be  able  to  see  an  inch  ahead  of  you;  looking 
at  Life  from  every  poinl  of  view,  it  will  seem  full  of 
mystery  and  misfortune;  but,  trust  God.  With  your 
heart  ever  turned  toward  Him,  as  the  trembling  needle 
to  the  pole,  press  on  !  The  great  iron  steamer,  that 
crosses  the  Atlantic  Ocean,  goes  forward  through  night, 
and  through  day,  through  storm  and  through  calm, 
sometimes  the  sea  raging  and  the  winds  at  war  with  the 
ocean;  but  she  presses  on  to  the  other  shore.  So  let  it 
b'  with  us;  trust  God  !  Burns  wrote  in  a  poetic  letter 
to  a  young  friend  a  most  useful  word  of  advice: 

"  When  ranting  round  in  pleasure's  ring, 

Religion  may  be  blinded  ; 
Or  if  she  give  a  random  ^ting, 

It  may  be  little  minded  ; 
But  when  on  earth  we're  tempest-driven, 

A  conscience  but  a  canker, 
A  corresp'tndi-iuv  fixed  with   Heaven, 

Is  sure  a  noble  anchor  I  " 

Sometimes  yen  will  be  on  the  mount  of  Transfigura- 
tion— all  will  be  bright,  and  glorious,  and  beautiful. 
At  such  a  time,  thank  God,  and  say,  "  It  is  good  to  be 
here."  At  other  times  you  may  be  walking  in  the 
very  shadow  of  despair.  The  hour  of  the  powers  <>f 
darkness  may  come  to  your  soul  ;  if  it  does,  then  learn 
like  your  Lord,  to  say,  "  Thy  will  be  done." 


LECTURES.  211 

A  little  boy  lay  dying.  He  turned  his  blue  eyes 
toward  his  father's  face,  and  said  :  "  Lift  rue  up,  papa, 
lift  me  up!"  He  raised  him  in  bed,  placing  his  arms 
tenderly  around  him.  "  Lift  me  higher,  papa,  lift  me 
up  higher  ! "  He  lifted  him  higher.  "  Just  a  little 
higher,  please,  sir.  Take  me  in  your  arms,  papa." 
His  father  held  him  in  his  outstretched  hands,  as  if  of- 
fering him  up  to  God.  Presently  he  heard  him  say, 
"  Good-bye,  papa."  The  angels  had  caught  him,  and 
lifted  him  up  higher — and  higher  still — up  to  the 
Throne  of  God ! 

Child  of  God,  whatever  may  be  the  ups  and  downs 
of  life,  if  you  trust  Him — trust  Him  always  -at  the 
last,  it  will  be  up  all  the  time  !  up  until  you  sit  at  His 
right  hand,  in  the  bright  world  above,  where  never  a 
cloud  is  seen,  and  never  a  tear  is  shed  ;  but  where  all  is 
joy  and  peace  forever.  Good-night,  good-night.  It 
will  soon  be  good-morning  on  the  other  shore. 


"MY  SECOND  TRIP  TO  EUROPE."1 

Ladies  and  Gentlemen  : — 

I  DEEPLY  appreciate  the  very  high  compliment  of 
so  large  an  audience.  I  was  not  surprised  that 
you  crowded  this  house  daily  when  you  listened  to  the 
preaching  of  the  gospel.  I  would  have  been  surprised 
had  you  not  come,  but  when  you  come  to  listen  to  a 

1  Reported  in  short-hand  by  a  friend  in  Charlottesville,  Va.,  Baptist  Church,  at  the 
clo6e  of  a  series  of  meetings. 


212  PULPIT,    PEW   AM>    PLATFORM. 

mere  talk  upon  the  subject  of  a  trip  across  the  ocean, 
and  pay  for  it  besides,  I  can  hut  feel  that  it  is  more  a 
compliment  to  the  lecturer  than  the  lecture. 

Now  that  we  are  all  here,  let  us  have  a  good  time.  I 
don't  propose  to  try  to  make  you  laugh,  hut  it*  you  feel 
like  laughing,  laugh.  I  don't  propose  to  try  to  make  you 
cry,  but  if  you  feel  like  crying,  cry.  I  don't  propose  to  try 
to  put  you  to  sleep,  hut  if  you  feel  like  going  to  sleep, 
go  ahead. 

I  think  the  most  pleasant  way  to  go  to  Europe  is  not 
to  know  you  are  going  for  a  week  or  two  beforehand. 
If  you  have  beeu  looking  forward  to  your  trip  and 
making  a  thousand  arrangements  ahead,  you  get  into  a 
nervous  tremor  for  fear  something  will  be  forgotten,  or 
you  will  be  disappointed  or  what  not;  and  it  creates  an 
unpleasant  feeling  that  will  mar  the  pleasure  of  your 
going.  I  had  been  through  a  long  winter  of  hard 
work,  and  my  friends  in  Baltimore  had  planned  a  trip 
and  asked  me  to  go  with  them.  I  hurriedly  made 
arrangements  to  join  the  party.  The  World's  Sunday- 
School  Convention  was  to  be  held  in  London.  Two 
hundred  ami  fifty  delegates  were  going,  and  our  steamer, 
"Bothnia,"  would  sail  from  New  York  on  the  morning  of 
the  19th  of  June.  At  the  time  appointed  we  were  on 
hand,  and  as  I  walked  along  down  and  looked  at  the 
steamer  I  saw  crowds  and  crowds  of  people  on  hoard. 
Tiny  were  just  as  thick  as  they  could  stand  and  all 
talking  at  once.  I  remember  as  soon  as  I  saw  them  I 
thought  if  all  those  people  are  going  to  Europe  I  don't 


LECTURES.  213 

see  how  we  shall  get  along.  They  were  so  thick  !  my  ! 
But  presently  somebody  cried  in  a  loud  voice  :  "Visitors 
ashore!"  Then  they  began  to  thin  out.  I  found  that 
they  had  come  to  tell  their  friends  on  the  steamer  "  good- 
bye." Then  they  went  to  kissing  one  another  right  and 
left.  If  you  tried  to  get  away  from  one,  another  would 
face  you.  It  was  getting  dangerous.  With  me  there  is 
some  little  preference  as  to  who  kissed  me,  but 
there  did  not  seem  to  be  much  chance  on  the 
steamer.  However,  I  escaped  without  injury  and  as  the 
conflict  did  not  last  long  it  passed  as  a  pleasant  episode. 
They  then  raised  the  gang-plank,  which  was  a  long  and 
heavy  board,  by  means  of  a  rope,  the  cable  was  loosed 
and  we  started  out  upon  our  voyage. 

As  we  set  sail,  the  river  was  full  of  boats  and  it  was 
a  beautiful  sight.  We  had  not  gone  far  before  our  little 
group  began  to  discuss  the  question  who  is  going  to  be 
sick  and  who  is  not.  We  had  bought  our  steamer 
chairs,  a  peculiar  chair  like  those  made  for  invalids,  so 
that  the  occupant  may  assume  any  position.  It  is  very 
suggestive,  for  you  are  apt  to  be  an  invalid  before  you 
reach  your  journey's  end. 

Well  we  were  all  sitting  around  in  our  party  dis- 
cussing the  sea-sick  question.  There  were  four  or  five 
preachers,  besides  other  professions  represented  and 
several  ladies.  We  had  in  our  party  a  professor  of  a 
southern  college.  He  had  a  theory  about  sea-sickness. 
He  said  it  was  not  necessary  for  anybody  to  be  sick. 
Said  he,  "  I  have  read  a  book  about  it  and  besides  I 


214  PULPIT,    PEW    AND    PLATFORM. 

have  reduced  it  to  a  science.  You  need  not  be  sea-sick 
at  all;  you  can  avoid  it,  and  I  will  tell  you  how."  I 
saw  he  was  very  earnest.  Said  he  (demonstrating  what 
he  meant  by  a  motion  of  the  body),  "  Lean  with  the 
.ship,  [f  she  goes  that  way,  lean  with  her,  follow  her 
inclinations;  whichever  way  she  goes,  you  go.  Thai's 
a  good  way  to  do,  too,  with  folks  that  are  not  ships, 
you  married  men.  Follow  her  inclinations.  Which 
ever  way  she  goes,  you  go.  It  will  keep  you  out  of  a 
great  deal  of  trouble  worse  than  sea-sickness.  You 
will  have  a  better  time  as  you  go.  Lean  with  her." 
Well,  another  gentleman  had  a  theory.  It  was  a  Balti- 
more preacher.  He  said:  "  I  will  tell  you  what  / 
think.  It  is  a  matter  of  the  will,  dust  will  not  to  be 
sick  and  you  won't  be  sick.  I  will  prove  my  words, 
and  I  will  be  at  the  table  at  every  meal,  because  I 
will  to  be  there."  We  went  along  and  came  to  the  place 
where  our  pilot  left  us.  It  is  required  that  every  ship 
must  have  a  professional  pilot.  His  business  is  to  take 
tiie  ship  in  and  out  of  port.  We  left  him  and  sent 
m  usages  back  to  the  friends  behind  us.  When  we  got 
out  on  the  ocean  proper  there  was  a  swell  going  on,  the 
worst  kind  of  a  swell.  'Die  wafers  seemed  to  be  a  suc- 
C  -ioii  of  hills  and  valleys.  The  ship  would  mount  up 
and  plunge  down  and  roll  over.  I  just  knew  the  folks 
were  going  to  be  sick.  1  had  been  there  before.  The 
lime  had  come.  I  saw  the  professor  walking  up  and 
down  the  deck  the  very  picture  of  despair.  His  race 
was  green  ;  in  fact,  he  looked  all  colors.    It  seemed  as  if 


LECTURES.  215 

he  had  the  leprosy.  He  wandered  up  to  me  and  said, 
"  Wharton,  I  am  wounded,"  and  was  soon  lost  to  view. 
By  and  by  I  went  down  and  found  the  preacher  with 
the  will  in  his  stateroom.  He  had  a  Scotch  cap  on  the 
back  of  his  head  and  was  down  on  his  knees  making  an 
offering  to  a  basin  that  was  sitting  just  in  front  of  him. 
said  I  :  (t  It's  altogether  a  matter  of  the  will,  you  know." 
He  did  not  hear  me.  Then  I  said  :  "  Have  you  been 
eating  anything  that  disagreed  with  you  ?"  "Oh,  no! 
Oh  no ! "  he  replied,  "  I've  been  drinking  Jamaica 
ginger,  but  it  don't  do  me  any  good."  About  this  time 
I  heard  from  the  professor's  stateroom  a  mournful 
sound.  I  went  in  there  and,  to  make  a  delicate  remark, 
it  seemed  to  me  as  if  he  was  throwing  up  things  he  had 
eaten  before  the  war.  It  looked  as  if  he  would  dislo- 
cate his  immortal  soul.  "  Lean  with  her,  doctor."  "  Oh, 
don't  talk !  don't  talk  !  I  will  never  live  to  get  to 
Europe."  As  I  left  the  room,  rather  hastily,  I  confess, 
I  heard  him  say,  "  Come  down  here  presently  and  see 
about  me,  will  you?"  But  he  was  not  alone;  there  was 
a  plenty  of  company  in  his  misery. 

Next  morning  at  the  breakfast  table,  out  of  about  300, 
I  counted  twenty.  I  tried  hard  to  keep  on  my 
feet,  and  succeeded,  as  did  several  others.  As  you  get 
along  up  in  the  ocean  it  gets  cold.  I  heard  of  a  bridal 
couple  who  went  across,  and  they  were  sitting  shivering 
in  their  steamer  chairs,  wrapped  in  robes,  with  their 
heads  sticking  out  like  mummies.  The  bride  said.  "  Oh  ! 
me ;  I  am  so  cold ;  Oo;-o  o-o-o !  !  won't  you  lend  me 


210  PULPIT,    PEW  AND    PLATFORM. 

your  blanket  ?"  If  she  had  said,  "Won't  you  let  me 
have  your  blanket?"  before  she  was  married,  she  would 
have  got  it,  hut  you  see  she  had  been  married  two  or 
three  weeks;  so  he  said,  "I  would  in  a  minute,  hut  I 
am  almost  frozen  myself;  Oo,-o-o-o-o  !"  lie  turned  to 
a  gentleman  who  was  not  siek,  and  whose  robe  was  ly- 
ing on  his  lap,  and  said,  "Would  you  lend  me  your 
robe  for  my  wife  ;  she  seems  to  be  sick,  and  she's  cold  ; 
would  you  lend  her  your  robe?"  The  gentleman  said, 
"  Certainly,"  and  handed  it  to  him.  But  the  groom 
resumed,  "Please,  you  put  it  around  her;  the  very  sight 
of  her  makes  me  siek." 

By  and  by  we  all  began  to  get  better.  We  had  de- 
lightful meetings  on  board  the  ship.  Religious  services 
three  or  four  times  a  day;  Sunday-school,  excellent 
teachers,  men  and  women,  and  a  host  of  preachers.  It 
was  said  by  somebody  that  ours  was  the  only  boat  that 
ever  crossed  the  Atlantic  of  which  Jesus  Christ  was  the 
commander.  Everything  went  on  systematically.  Four 
meals  a  day  :  breakfast  at  seven,  lunch  at  one,  dinner  at 
six,  and  supper  at  nine  or  ten.  Looking  out  upon  the 
ocean  we  saw  many  things,  but  we  didn't  often  see  a 
ship.  Sometimes  we  read  the  poetical  expression,  "  the 
seas  whitened  by  the  sails,"  but  you  will  travel  days 
without  seeing  one.  One  Sunday  we  saw  a  Norwegian 
ship,  and  she  had  -tuck  out  half  a  dozen  flags,  a  signal 
we  did  not  understand.  A  lady  standing  by  me  said  : 
"  They  are  not  over-religious  to  be  hanging  their  wash- 
ing out  on  Sunday."     We  arrived  in  Liverpool  Satur- 


LECTURES.  217 

day  night,  June  29th.  Sunday  morning  the  chairman 
of  the  committee  of  the  International  Convention  took 
u  3  ashore.  Everybody  wanted  to  hear  Mr.  Spurgeon 
preach.  We  said,  No,  let  us  stop  right  here  and  spend 
the  day  as  becomes  Americans.  We  proposed  to  keep  the 
Sabbath  in  Liverpool;  so  we  went  to  church  and  had  a 
pleasautday.  That  night  we  were  given  a  reception  in  Liv- 
erpool. We  had  a  wide  hall  which  would  seat  a  thousand 
people  and  it  was  crowded.  Many  speeches  were  made, 
songs  were  sung,  and  joy  filled  all  hearts.  There  was  a 
good  deal  of  gush,  but  I  reckon  it  is  pardonable  on  such 
occasions.  We  were  glad  to  get  there — glad  to  get  any- 
where, in  fact.  I  must  speak  of  one  thing.  The  Amer- 
icans are  very  much  afraid  of  having  a  woman  in  public 
positions.  If  a  woman  says  a  word  in  meeting,  they 
want  her  put  out.  If  a  woman  says  "politics/'  the  aver- 
age American  will  go  off  into  a  fit.  If  a  woman  has 
any  idea  of  going  into  a  profession,  he  mourns  and  will 
not  be  comforted.  Over  here  in  England  they  have  the 
best  government  on  earth.  There  is  no  government 
that  has  stood  like  England's.  Why,  the  first  thing  I 
saw  there  was  the  statue  of  a  woman  on  horseback. 
They  changed  some  money  for  me,  and  there  was  the 
image  of  a  woman  on  the  coins. 

Then  I  was  told  that  they  had  a  woman  on  the 
throne.  Well,  it  would  not  be  hard  for  me  to  be  under 
the  government  of  a  woman.  The  men  don't  mind  that 
so  much  if  they  come  one  at  a  time.  Over  there  the 
ladies  are  as  bashful  and  as  modest  as  they  are  over  here. 


218  PULPIT,    PEW   AND    PLATFORM. 

I  think  ifthe  men  folks  don't  manage  any  bettor  than 
they  have  been  doing  we  had  hotter  have  a  woman.  I 
should  be  glad  to  see  a  Mrs.  Presidentif  Mr.  President 
doesn't  improve.  I  know  that's  not  orthodox,  but  I 
would  be  willing  to  give  a  good  woman  a  trial. 

From  Liverpool  we  went  to  London.  ^  ou  can- 
not conceive  of  Loudon.  Every  street  I  saw  is  like 
Broadway,  New  York.  A  friend  of  mine  once 
went  on  Broadway.  He  stood  still  a  long  time  watch- 
ing the  crowd.  Somebody  said  to  him,  "  What  are  you 
standing  here  for?"  He  said,  "  I  am  waiting  for  the  pro- 
cession  to  pass."  It  looks  that  way  in  London.  They 
drive  very  rapidly.  You  would  be  surprised  to  sec  how 
close  the  vehicles  go  to  each  other  and  not  come  into  col- 
lision. They  always  drive  to  the  left.  They  walk  to  the 
left.  The  trains  run  to  the  left.  The  first  thing,  when 
we  got  off  the  train,  we  were  met  with  a  great  long  card  : 
"The Lord  Mayor  respectfully  invites  yon  to  a  World's 
Sunday-school  Reception."  The  Lord  Mayor  of  London 
is  mayorofjust  a  portion  of  the  millions  of  its  inhabitants. 
His  authority  is  limited.  He  gets  s">0,000  salary,  so 
he  can  afford  to  give  a  reception  sometimes.  He  gave 
u-  a  speech,  which  was  responded  to  by  several ;  then 
they  had  refreshments.  AVe  saw  the  Lady  Mayoress 
and  shook  hands  with  her.  AVe  went  out  to  a  garden 
party  given  us  by  the  Karl  and  Countess  of  Aberdeen. 
The  Countess  made  a  very  pretty  little  speech  and  enter- 
tained us  handsomely.  We  heard  Joseph  Parker  preach 
and  he  is  the  most  eloquent  of  men.     His    imagination 


LECTURES.  219 

is  wonderful,  his  eloquence  matchless,  his  theology  rot- 
ten. I  believe  he  is  a  greater  preacher  than  (certainly 
as  great  as)  Henry  Ward  Beecher.  He  is  indeed  a  fine 
orator,  but  when  you  want  to  hear  the  real  gospel  of 
Christ  preached,  Charles  H.  Spurgeon  is  the  man.  He 
preaches  to  five  or  six  thousand  every  Sunday.  There 
are  two  galleries  in  his  church,  one  like  this,  only  it  runs 
all  around,  and  one  above  it.  His  church  is  so  con- 
structed that  everybody  in  it  can  see  the  preacher. 

Some  years  ago  there  was  a  boy  in  London  named 
Charrington,  a  hard  case.  He  had  a  chum  who  was 
about  his  own  age,  and  who  became  converted.  This 
chum  went  after  two  or  three  fellows,  and  tried  to  get 
others  to  come  to  Christ.  They  went  to  work  in  a  little 
stable  loft.  He  went  one  day  after  Charrington.  He 
said,  "  I  have  no  time ;"  but  he  afterwards  thought :  that 
fellow  seems  to  be  happy  in  the  life  he  is  living,  and  I 
am  not  happy  in  my  own  life ;  I  will  see  what  he  is  do- 
ing. He  went  to  the  stable  and  heard  him  talk 
about  Christ.  Charrington  was  converted  and  joined 
his  chum  in  the  same  kind  of  work.  One  day  the  man 
that  owned  the  stable  said  to  the  young  men  :  "  You  all 
cannot  come  up  in  my  stable  loft  any  more.  You  keep 
so  much  noise  my  horse  cannot  sleep."  They  got  a  room 
and  carried  on  their  work.  Charrington  was  sent  for 
by  his  old  father,  who  was  a  wealthy  brewer.  Said  the 
old  man  :  "  You  are  interfering  with  my  business.  Re- 
ligious meetings  and  beer-brewing-  don't  go  together. 
You  will  have  to  quit."     Young  Charrington   replied  : 


220  PULPIT,    PEW    AND    PLATFORM. 

•■  Father,  T  cannot  quit  ;  I  feel  that  God  has  called  me 
to  try  and  rescue  my  fellow-creatures.  I  feel  that  h<> 
has  called  me  to  this  work."  Said  the  father:  "You 
will  fall  heir  to  my  fortune,  if  you  quit  that  work  ;  but 
if  you  do  not  conform  to  ray  wishes,  that  ends  the  mat- 
ter between  in,  and  I  disinherit  you."  The  young  man 
said  he  was  sorry  to  hear  his  father  talk  that  way  and 
went  back  to  his  work.  They  had  a  terrible  part  of 
London  to  work  in.  By  and  by,  Charrington's  father 
sent  for  him  again,  and  said  :  "  I  am  going  to  die ;  I  am 
sorry  for  what  I  did  ;  I  leave  you  a  rich  legacy  ;  do  with 
it  as  yon  will."  He  put  up  a  building  straightway,  and 
now  they  have  a  house  that  can  seat  5500  people.  The 
congregation,  every  one  of  them,  belong  to  the  very  low- 
est classes.  To  stand  and  look  into  the  faces  of  that 
throng  is  enough  to  move  a  heart  of  stone.  It  was  my 
privilege  to  preach  to  them.  I  wanted  to  go  through 
the  slums  of  London,  so  I  asked  Mr.  Charrington  about 
it.  He  said  :  "  If  ypu  go  once,  you  will  not  want  to  go 
any  more,  but  it  is  worth  seeing.  We  will  get  a  detec- 
tive to  go  with  you.  Your  life  will  be  endangered."  I 
asked  two  or  three  of  my  friends  to  go  with  me.  We 
employed  a  detective,  and  at  twelve  o'clock  on  Monday 
night  we  met  at  Charrington's  great  Assembly 
Hall  and  started  out.  We  were  instructed  by 
the  detective  to  pull  down  our  hats  over  our 
and  say  nothing.  Said  he,  "If  they  find 
out  you  are  preachers,  I  would  not  give  much  for  your 
chances.     If  they  see  you  with  me  they   will  think  you 


LECTURES.  221 

are  detectives.  You  wll  not  see  anybody  but  criminals. 
Be  cautious."  It  is  beyond  my  power  to  describe  what 
we  saw  that  night.  Women,  the  most  abandoned 
wretches  of  all  the  earth  ;  men  with  bruised  faces  and 
ragged  clothes  ;  children,  destitute  and  depraved.  The 
detective  said  of  some  places  as  we  passed  through, 
"  This  is  where  I  am  afraid  to  go  alone  myself."  One 
of  our  party  said  :  "  I  wan't  to  see  all  that's  to  be  seen, 
but  if  there's  danger  I  don't  want  to  go  into  it."  The  de- 
tective answered  :  "  The  criminal  classes  are  cowards, 
and  if  one  attacks  yon,  crowd  him  and  he  will  run." 
"Yes,"  my  friend  said,  "  but  I  don't  wan't  to  crowd  them; 
I  have  a  wife  and  two  children  at  home."  I  think  all 
of  us  felt  pretty  much  the  same  way. 

One  of  the  first  places  we  came  to  was  a  public  house. 
It  was  between  twelve  and  one  o'clock.  The  people 
poured  out,  human  nature  in  ruins.  I  think  it  was 
some  kind  of  an  entertainment.  Women  and  children 
mixed  up  with  the  men.  When  they  caught  sight  of 
the  detective  they  fled  away  from  us.  Some  looked  as 
though  they  were  out  Jtrying  to  find  a  lodging.  Some- 
times they  looked  at  us  as  if  they  were  saying,  "  I 
wonder  which  one  of  us  it  is  they  are  after?"  We 
went  into  what's  called  a  pot-house.  Here  we  saw  men 
wallowing  on  the  floor  in  their  drunkenness  and  they 
looked  up  at  us  like  wild  animals.  Each  one  thought 
we  had  come  to  arrest  him.  We  saw  a  group  of  men 
talking.  The  detective  stopped  and  took  a  look  into 
their  faces.     They  commenced  getting  away,  every  man 


222  PULPIT,    PEW    AND    PLATFORM. 

in  a  different  direction*  How  true  it  is,  "  The  guilty 
flee  when  no  man  pursueth."  As  we  were  going  along 
we  passed  a  little  boy  who  was  asleep;  the  faint  light, 
dimmed  by  the  thick  fog,  fell  upon  his  pale,  upturned 

face.  No  hat  on,  his  hair  uncombed.  As  we  stood 
there  looking  upon  that  face,  I  thought  :  "  Poor  little 
fellow  !  he  has  a  history.  Perhaps  his  mother  is  a  drunk- 
ard. Perhaps  his  father  is  in  prison.  It  may  be  the 
spirit  of  a  good  woman,  gone  away  from  the  world,  is 
hovering  over  him.  Is  this  a  flower  blooming  in  a 
desert?  Is  he  dreaming  of  a  future  that  will  bless  the 
earth?  Just  then  our  detective  touched  him  and  he 
opened  his  eyes,  and  was  gone  in  an  instant.  There  is 
a  hospital  in  this  wretched  district.  Once  a  little  fellow 
had  been  carried  there  and  laid  on  a  bed.  His  limbs 
were  crushed.  They  laid  him  on  a  bunk.  The  doctor 
examined  him  and  said  :  "  Nothing  can  be  done  for 
him  now;  make  him  as  comfortable  as  you  can;  he  will 
soon  be  gone."  Another  little  boy  heard  it.  He  went 
to  the  bed-side  and  said:  "What  is  your  name'.'" 
"  My  name  is  Bobby."  "Did  yoti  hear  what  the  doctor 
-aid,  Bobby?  The  doctor  said  you  are  going  to  die, 
Bobby.  I  go  to  the  Mission  School  and  the  teacher 
told  me  that  Jesus  loves  little  boys,  that  if  we  would 
put  our  trust  in  Him  He  would  save  us.  lie  will  come 
along  alter  you  to-  night. M  The  dying  child  replied: 
"lie  don't  love  poor  boys  like  me.  My  father  is  a 
drunkard  and  mother  has  to  work  for  US  all,  and  we  are 
so   poor   there  don't  anybody  care  for  us."     "  Yes,  but 


LECTURES.  223 

teacher  said  he  loves  poor  little  boys  just  as  well  as 
others.  Yon  talk  to  him,  Bobby.  He  can  hear  you. 
He  is  always  uear."  The  little  fellow  was  dying.  "  I 
am  so  sleepy  and  tired  I  don't  know  what  to  do." 
"  Well,  Bobby/'  said  the  other  little  fellow,  "  if  you 
don't  feel  like  calling  just  raise  your  hand,  and  He  will 
see  it  and  stop  and  save  you."  But  the  poor  child  was 
too  weak  to  raise  his  hand.  Then  the  little  comforter 
said  :  "  I  know  what  I  will  do,  I  will  get  my  pillow." 
He  went  to  his  cot  and  got  his  own  little  pillow. 
"  You  just  put  your  hand  on  this  pillow,  and  when  Jesus 
comes  along  He  will  see  your  hand  on  the  pillow,  and 
He  will  know  it  was  raised  for  Him  and  He  will  take 
you  home  with  Him.  Good-night,  Bobby ;  don't  be 
afraid."  The  nurse  heard  it  all  and  sat  and  wiped  the 
tears  from  her  eyes  in  silence.  Then  bending  over  the 
dying  boy,  she  kissed  him.  He  waked  up  and  said, 
"  Please  kiss  me  again  ;  it  is  like  my  mother."  He 
soon  fell  asleep  and  his  spirit  passed  away.  Don't  you 
think  Jesus  came  there  and  took  him  where  there  isn't 
any  poverty  and  pain. 

As  we  went  aloug  the  detective  said :  "  I  will  tell  you 
the  cause  of  all  these  troubles.  These  bar-rooms. 
There's  never  any  hope  for  these  people  as  long  as  these 
bar-rooms  are  kept  open."  We  see  bar-rooms  and  their 
consequences  only  in  a  slight  degree  here  in  America, 
compared  with  what  they  are  in  London.  O  that  there 
might  be  no  more  bar-rooms  on  the  earth.  When  will 
the  day  of  deliverance  come  ! 


2lM  PULPIT,    PEW    A.ND    PLATFORM. 

We  went  to  Fiance  by  way  of  New  Haven  and 
Dieppe, pausing  awhile  at  Brighton,  the  famous  sea-side 
r<  Bort. 

Approaching  Paris  we  could  see  the  Eiffel  Tower. 
It  is  one  thousand  feet  high  and  looks  something  like  a 
wind-mill  tower.  1  went  up  to  the  top  of  it.  Jt  took 
four  elevators  to  get  me  there,  one  at  a  time.  Professor 
Eiffel  lives  right  in  the  top.  lie  dues  that  because, 
when  he  was  building  it,  somebody  said  it  was  a  danger- 
ous structure  and  would  fall.  So  he  lives  there  on  it 
and  in  it  to  prove  that  he  did  not  build  a  thing  he  was 
afraid  of.  My  friends,  what  an  illustration  here  for  us  ! 
We  talk  about  the  religion  of  Jesus  Christ  as  all- 
sufficient  for  life  and  death.  Let  us  live  on  it  and  in  it, 
and  show  to  the  world  that  our  religion  is  what  we 
profess  it  to  be.  Just  above  Prof.  Eiffel's  house,  which 
is  right  on  the  top  of  the  tower,  a  little  sparrow  has 
built  its  nest,  as  if  God  were  saying  to  man  :  "  You 
may  build  as  high  as  you  please, but  my  little  birds  shall 
build  above  you."  I  used  to  sit  up  on  the  scat  beside 
the  French  driver  and  talk  French  to  him.  He  did 
not  understand  me,  but  I  talked  on  all  the  same.  I  saw 
two  balloons  up  in  the  air;  they  seemed  to  be  permanent. 
I  wanted  to  ask  him  in  French  the  meaning  of  it.  So 
I  said  :  "  Monseeur — ah  oo-aa, — what's  that  yonder?" 
lie  said  :  "  Balloon  eapitief."  Well,  well,  I  couldn't 
understand  t/mf — "  Balloon  eapitief."  I  found  out  that 
"the  large  balloons  were  tied  by  means  of  a  rope  to  a 
stake  iu  the  ground,  so  that  they  could   not  get  any 


»  LECTURES.  225 

higher,  and  there  they  were  held  captive  in  the  skies. 
Have  you  not  sometimes  wondered  why  a  certain 
Christian  does  not  get  higher  up  on  the  heavenly  way? 
They  seem  to  ascend  and  stop.  What  is  the  trouble  ? 
They  are  captives.  There  is  some  sin  holding  them 
down  to  the  earth.  They  want  to  rise,  but  they  are  held 
down  by  this  chain  which  Satan  has  forged  and 
fastened  on  them.  There  are  two  amusements  in  Paris 
which  we  must  not  overlook :  Dancing  and  music, 
right  in  the  streets.  When  the  ball  commences, 
the  policemen  check  the  procession  at  once.  They  say  : 
"We  are  having  a  dance  now;  go  some  other  way." 
They  just  turn  the  moving  mass  right  out  of  the  streets 
and  send  you  round  the  square.  Paris  is  a  city  of 
pleasure.  As  to  serving  God,  they  don't  know  anything 
about  that.  The  religion  of  Jesus  Christ  is  hardly 
known.  From  Paris  we  went  to  Geneva.  Geneva  is  a 
beautiful  city.  We  saw  the  musical  box  establishments, 
the  watch  factories,  the  beautiful  Lake  of  Geneva,  Mt. 
Blanc  aud  many  other  things  around  Geneva.  And 
here  we  held  a  council  as  to  whether  we  would  go  to 
Rome.  People  say,  "Don't  go  to  Rome  in  summer, 
because  every  body  dies  of  the  Rome  fever."  Just  as 
we  say  in  America,  "Don't  go  to  tide-water  in  August; 
if  you  do,  you  are  sure  to  have  a  chill."  I  once  heard 
a  good  definition  of  a  Northern  man  with  Southern 
feelings.  Can  you  describe  him?  Think  a  minute. 
Give  it  up?  A  Yankee  with  a  chill  on  him.  We  held 
a  consultation  about  catching  the  Rome  fever.  Four  or 
15 


226  PULPIT,    PEW    AND    PLATFORM. 

five  said,  let  us  go  to  Rome.  Five  resolved  to  go  and 
run  the  risk  of  the  fever.  We  left  Geneva  at  daylight. 
At  Turin  we  took  supper.  I  wonder  if  we  don't  get 
tureen  from  there.  I  heard  of  something  that  happened 
near  Turin.  In  one  of  Napoleon's  encounters  the 
Austrians  had  planted  twenty  or  thirty  cannon  on 
the  bridge.  A  rain  came  up  so  that  the  Po  was  swollen 
and  Napoleon  could  not  join  his  general.  The  general 
could  not  see  his  way  through,  so  he  said  to  his  little 
drummer  :  "  Beat  a  retreat  !  "  The  little  fellow  replied  : 
"  I  cannot.  I  don't  know  how.  They  never  taught  me 
to  beat  a  retreat.  I  can  beat  a  charge.  If  you  will  let 
me  beat  a  charge,  I  will  beat  such  a  charge  that  these 
dead  men  will  rise  and  fall  into  line."  At  this  point 
Napoleon  came  galloping  up.  He  said  :  "A  charge! 
A  CHARGE  it  shall  be."  Such  a  charge  it  Mas,  and 
Napoleon  ayou  the  victory  over  the  Austrians  too. 
Christians!!!  Let  there  be  no  retreats.  Go  forward 
and  onward  !  We  follow  a  Commander  who  uever  lost 
a  fight. 

"From  victory  unto  victory  his  army  he  shall  lead, 
Till  every  foe  is  vanquished  and  Christ  is  Lord  indeed." 

The  next  place  we  went  to  was  Genoa,  the  home  of 
Columbus.  I  felt  like  taking  my  hat  off  when  I  re- 
membered what  Columbus  encountered  when  he  had 
nothing  to  cross  the  ocean  in  but  a  little  sail-boat  with  a 
handful  of  mutinous  men.  If  I  could  find  his  widow, 
I  should  be  in  favor  of  taking  up  a  collection  for  her. 


LECTURES.  227 

We  went  to  the  proprietor  of  a  hotel  in  Genoa  and 
asked  what  is  the  most  interesting  sight  in  Genoa?  He 
replied:  "The  cemetery."  I  thought:  "Name  of 
sense,  is  there  nothing  here  more  interesting  than  a 
cemetery?"  Well,  it's  worth  seeing.  There's  nothing 
on  earth  like  it.  Just  imagine  this  house  with  the  walls 
knocked  out,  with  everything  here  turned  to  marble. 
A  square  of  ten  acres  of  buried  people.  Living  mem- 
bers of  the  family  standing  around,  all  in  marble.  The 
exact  image  of  the  dead  member  in  marble.  There  was 
a  preacher  in  his  pulpit,  marble.  We  speak  of  marble 
talking.  It  talks  there.  No  need  of  any  description 
or  engraved  words.  There  was  a  little  sail-boat  of 
marble ;  a  young  man  standing  with  his  foot  on  the 
edge  furling  a  sail,  all  in  marble.  As  he  stood  there 
you  could  read  it  in  his  face : — 

"  Drop  the  anchor,  furl  the  sail, 
I  am  safe  within  the  vail." 

WTe  left  Genoa  and  went  to  Pisa.  Pisa  is  an  Italian 
city.  There  are  three  things  to  see  there  :  the  old 
Cathedral,  the  Leaning  Tower  and  the  Baptistery.  The 
tower  is  180  feet  high.  You  cannot  see  the  shaft  of  it 
when  you  are  on  top  of  it,  and  you  feel  like  falling  all 
the  time  you're  on  it.  We  next  went  to  the  Cathedral. 
"  There  it  is,"  said  our  guide.  We  looked  at  the  old 
chandelier,  which  a  few  centuries  ago  a  man  named 
Galileo  had  looked  at.  He  saw  it  move.  "  I  have  it,"  said 
he — the  pendulum.  And  now  ten  thousand  times  ten  thou- 


228  PULPIT,    PEW    AND    PLATPORM. 

sand  pendulums  hum  his  praises  the  world  over.  Then 
we  went  to  the  Baptistery.  I  asked  the  guide  how  they 
baptized  there:  did  they  sprinkle,  or  pour,  or  bury 
them  under  the  water?  "Oh,"  said  he,  "  they  wet  them 
all  over."  I  mention  this  for  the  benefit  of  our 
Presbyterian,  Episcopalian  and  Methodist  friends 
present.  From  Pisa  we  went  to  Rome  and  from  Rome 
to  Naples.  There's  no  telling  how  long  my  lecture  is 
going  to  be  to-night;  I've  just  got  in  a  fair  way.  It 
any  of  you  waut  to  go  home,  go,  but  don't  ask  for  your 
money  at  the  door.  I've  been  about  this  thing  an  hour 
now  and  I  have  hardly  well  begun. 

We  went  through  Rome  and  on  to  Naples.  I  have 
heard  it  said,  "  See  Naples  and  die."  See  Naples,  and  if 
you  don't  get  away  pretty  soon,  you  will  die.  It  is 
estimated  that  it  has  from  700,000  to  1,200,000  inhabit- 
ants. Almost  all  over  the  city  you  will  find  goats,  dogs, 
people,  donkeys  and  boys,  filth,  rags,  wretchedness  ;  men, 
women  and  children  barefooted  and  bareheaded.  And 
of  all  the  odoriferous  places  !  Some  of  our  party  would 
say:  w  My  !  what  is  that?  That's  one  I  never  smelt 
before."  Another:  u  Whew— ew  !  it  is  awful  !"  The 
morning  after  I  got  there,  they  brought  up  six  goats 
and  milked  them  right  before  the  hotel  door.  I  did  not 
have  any  appetite  that  morning.  We  determined  to  get 
away  and  see  Vesuvius.  Great  volumes  of  smoke  were 
rolling  upward  every  now  and  then  from  the  summit  that 
reached  far  up  towards  the  sky.  We  said  we  must  go 
on  the  mountain.     We  hired  a  carriage,  drove  along  ten 


LECTURES.  229 

miles  to  the  base  of  Vesuvius,  the  first  depot  of  the 
Vesuvius  Railroad.  There's  a  car  pulled  up  a  mountain 
by  an  engine  and  cable.  You  can  look  down  upon 
Naples,  the  Bay  of  Naples  and  just  beyond  the  setting 
sun.  Yes,  Naples  was  beautiful  then,  in  the  distance. 
While  we  were  ascending,  I  thought,  suppose  this  rope 
would  break,  where  would  we  be  then  ?  That  reminds 
me  of  the  famous  bear  story.  Two  darkies  found  some 
bear  cubs  in  a  hollow  tree.  One  said  to  the  other : 
"  Sam,  if  you  go  after  dem  bars,  I'll  stan'  here  and  take 
urn  down  when  you  gin  urn  to  me,  and  I  kin  watch  for 
de  ole  bar."  After  a  little  further  dialogue  Jim  went 
through  the  hole  and  was  just  getting  at  the  cubs  when 
here  came  the  old  mother.  Sam  dodged  behind  the 
tree,  and  as  she  went  up  caught  her  by  the  tail,  just  as 
she  got  her  head  in  the  hole.  Jim  called  out  from  the 
inside  :  ''Sam!  Sam  !  !  what  dat  darkenin'  the  hole?" 
Sam,  holding  on  with  all  his  might,  squawled  out:  "If 
dis  here  tail  break  you'll  see  what's  darkenin'  de  hole.'' 
But  the  tail  didn't  break  and  neither  did  the  cable,  and 
we  got  up  to  the  first  station.  We  left  the  car  and 
walked  on  in  the  dust,  mounting  up  to  the  crater, 
Vesuvius  trembling  under  our  feet.  I  wished  we  could 
go  back.  Never  have  I  felt  a  sense  of  danger  more  than 
I  did  that  afternoon,  never  such  immediate  danger  as  at 
that  time.  The  strange  rumbling  noise  could  be  heard 
twenty  miles  away.  We  were  told  that  three  or  four 
hundred  wagon-loads  of  lava  had  been  thrown  out  and 
carried  off  only  a  short  time  before.     One  of  our  party 


230  PULPIT,    PEW   AND    PLATFORM. 

said :  u  And  what's  to  hinder  it  from  coming  out 
now."  "You  have  got  to  run  that  risk,"  said  the  guide. 
At  that  time  the  smoke  was  shooting  up  just  as  high 
as  we  could  see.  Wc  looked  down  into  the  lake  of  fire 
and  brimstone.  The  hot  dust  and  ashes,  cinder  and  fire 
were  constantly  rising  out  of  the  horrible  mouth  with 
terrific  sound  and  falling  almost  at  our  feet.  If  the 
wind  had  been  blowing  towards  us  we  would  have  been 
consumed.  I  was  behind  the  wind.  For  a  shilling  a 
man  caught  a  piece  of  lava  for  me,  dipped  a  penny 
into  it  before  it  cooled.  I  have  it  now.  You  don't 
want  to  see  that  spot  but  once.  It  is  awful  beyond  de- 
scription. There  is  no  language  for  Vesuvius.  From 
there  we  went  back  to  Rome,  the  empire  of  history. 
Every  house,  every  street,  every  old  wharf,  the  very  air 
seemed  full  of  history.  Somebody  will  show  you  the 
spot  where  Julius  Caesar  received  his  death-wound  ;  the 
arena  where  87,000  people  could  sit  and  witness  the 
fight  with  the  wild  beasts,  as  Christians  were  torn  to 
pieces — martyrs  to  their  faith.  One  old  man  of  eighty 
was  called  up  before  the  court.  "■  You  must  give  up 
your  faith,"  they  said,  "  or  you  must  die."  "I  can  die," 
said  the  old  saint,  "  but  I  cannot  give  up  my  faith." 
They  sent  him  to  the  Colosseum,  and  as  he  stood  there 
and  saw  the  hungry  wild  beasts,  he  said,  "  Let  them 
come  on."  In  a  moment's  time  they  had  torn  him  to 
pieces,  and  his  noble  soul  was  with  his  God.  We  stood 
there  and  looked  where  the  vestal  virgin  sat,  and  just  by 
turning  her  thumb  it  meant  for  the  gladiators  to  begin 


LECTURES.  231 

their  fight  for  life  or  death.  She  raised  her  thumb  up 
for  the  fight  to  continue.  When  she  turned  it  down  it 
meant  they  must  cease.  The  gladiator  was  released. 
He  had  fought  enough.  There's  many  a  woman  who 
has  within  her  the  same  power  the  vestal  virgin  had, 
— some  wife,  some  mother,  who,  under  God,  may 
direct  her  husband,  her  son  to  the  feet  of  Jesus  and  life, 
or  the  other  way  and  death.  There  are  over  350 
Catholic  churches  iu  Rome.  Be  it  far  from  me  to  speak 
lightly  of  anything  that  is  religious.  But  some  very 
ridiculous  things  are  brought  to  your  notice.  One 
piece  of  marble  has  the  tracks  or  footprints  of  Jesus 
Christ.  When  Jesus  Christ  was  coming  to  Rome,  he 
met  Peter  running  away,  and  as  he  stood  and  talked  his 
feet  sank  in  the  marble  slab  on  which  he  stood  and 
made  these  tracks.  What  a  lie!  They  have  five  legs  of 
the  colt  on  which  Jesus  rode  into  Jerusalem,  it  is  said. 
A  bottle  of  his  own  blood  is  also  exhibited.  They  say 
when  everything  goes  in  accordance  with  the  Pope's 
wishes,  the  blood  liquefies;  but  if  not  it  becomes  solid. 
Napoleon  was  there  once.  The  Pope  did  not  approve 
his  coming,  so  he  let  the  Emperor  know  that  the  blood 
of  Jesus  had  solidified.  Napoleon  sent  word  to  the 
Pope  :  "  If  that  blood  doesn't  liquefy  in  ten  minutes, 
he  would  turn  his  cannon  on  the  whole  place."  It 
liquefied  in  a  few  minutes.  I  saw  two  prison- 
houses.  The  prison-house  of  the  Pope.  You  kuow  he 
claims  to  be  a  prisoner.  I  saw  his  Vatican.  Where  he 
lives  everything  is  beautiful.     I  saw  his  carriage.     It 


2o2  PULPIT,    PEW    AND    PLATFORM. 

cosf  $36,0C0.  All  laid  with  gold— gold  on  the  harness 
as  well  as  the  carriage.  One  hundred  and  fifty  soldiers 
stand  guard  over  the  Pope.  The  old  1*01)0  is  so  rich 
he's  afraid  somebody  will  rob  him.  The  government 
allows  him  to  have  the  guard  and  he  pays  the  soldiers 
out  of  his  own  salary,  which  he  can  well  afford  to  do, 
as  he  gets  millions  of  dollars  one  way  and  another. 
The  other  prison  I  saw  was  Paul's.  As  we  walked  up 
in  the  dark,  musty,  damp  old  dungeon,  and  I  stood 
within  those  thick  walls,  I  said  to  the  guide:  "  Is  this 
where  they  had  the  apostle  Paul  ? "  "  No,  a  worse 
place  than  this."  He  took  us  right  down  into  a  room 
below,  not  a  ray  of  light,  not  a  breath  of  fresh  air, 
down  in  the  lowest  vault,  with  no  opening  except  the 
little  hole  through  which  we  had  come.  There  was 
the  stoue  he  was  chained  to.  Of  all  memories  that  come 
up  from  the  past  in  Rome  I  would  rather  have  this. 
I  am  glad  I  saw  the  place  where  Paul  was  confined — 
the  prison,  for  Jesus  Christ. 

Koine  is  a  delightful  city.  One  of  the  best  hotels  we 
found  in  Europe  was  the  Continental.  From  Rome  we 
went  to  Florence.  Then  on  to  Venice,  the  city  where 
there  is  not  a  carriage  nor  a  wagon,  not  a  horse,  not  a 
wheel.  They  go  in  boats.  A  city  in  the  sea.  Up  one 
street  and  down  another.  We  got  there  at  twelve 
o'clock  at  night.  The  guide  nut  us  and  said,  "  get  in 
here."  A  gondola  or  beautiful  boat.  Between  twelve 
and  one  o'clock  at  night  we  went  quietly  along  and  heard 
nothing   but    the  ripple  of  the  oars  and  the  occasional 


LECTURES.  233 

cry  of  the  boat-mau.  They  have  a  certain  call  when 
one  boat  meets  another  and  when  they  turn  a  corner  of 
the  street.  Traveling  in  that  style  at  night,  the  effect  is 
strange  but  delightful.  There  was  a  man  who  went  to 
Venice  and  got  there  in  the  night,  as  we  did.  They  took 
him  in  a  gondola  to  a  hotel.  As  soon  as  he  was  out  of  the 
boat  he  ran  up  to  the  hotel  clerk  and  asked  :  "  What 
time  does  the  train  leave  Venice  in  the  morning?" 
"  What  ! "  said  the  proprietor,  "  you  are  not  going  to 
leave  us  so  soon '? "  "  Yes ;  wake  me  up  prompt. 
Never  mind  though,  you  needn't  give  me  a  room.  No 
sleep  here  for  me  to-night."  Next  morning  he  went  to 
Milan,  where  he  had  left  some  friends.  They  wanted 
to  know  why  he  was  back  so  soon.  "  Back  so  soon  ! 
I  am  thankful  to  get  here  at  all ;  there  is  the  biggest 
freshet  going  on  in  Venice  you  ever  heard  of  in  your 
life;  the  people  are  traveling  in  boats  and  the  water  was 
up  to  the  hotel  steps  when  I  left.  I  expect  the  whole 
town  is  washed  away  by  this  time."  Yet  I  tell  you, 
gentlemen,  you  just  get  in  Venice  one  pretty  moonlight 
night  in  a  little  gondola  and  somebody  with  you,  and 
stroll  quietly  along  to  the  music  of  the  oar,  and  if  you 
don't  have  a  good  time  you  don't  know  how.  I  should 
like  to  put  upon  canvas  the  lakes  of  Italy.  There  is 
sweet  restful ness  even  in  the  thought  of  Maggiore.  There 
you  may  rest  hand  and  head,  body  and  soul ;  you  can- 
not be  restless  there.  We  bought  tickets  to  Lucerne. 
We  were  among  the  Germans.  I  wanted  my  baggage 
attended  to,  so  I  called  out,  "  Monsieur  !  baggage,  mein 


23  l  PULPIT,    PEW  AND    PLATFORM. 

herr?"  He  said  to  me:  "  Mr.,  can  you  speak  English  ? 
I  said,  "  Yes."  "  Talk  that  then,"  he  replied,  "  and  I'll 
understand  yon."  We  stayed  at  Lucerne  awhile  and 
then  went  to  Baden-Baden,  one  of  the  chief  watering- 
places  of  Germany,  and  then  went  to  Strasburg.  You 
know  that  the  French  people  held  it  once,  but  the 
Germans  got  it  back  again.  At  Strasburg  a  great  clock 
is  the  one  attraction  there.  It  is  about  as  big  as  the  end 
of  a  house  and  gives  you  the  movements  of  all  the 
planets  aud  the  whole  solar  system.  It  gives  you  the 
time  of  the  month,  week  and  day.  At  twelve  o'clock 
two  little  angels  stand  up  and  tap  silver  bells.  Old 
Father  Time  comes  out  and  strikes  twelve  strokes  with  a 
hammer.  Right  above,  as  this  man  strikes  the  hour  of 
twelve,  the 'apostles  step  out  and  walk  around  an  image 
of  Jesus  and  bow.  Peter  comes  out,  but  does  not  bow, 
and  just  at  that  time  a  rooster  crows.  I  thought  when 
I  heard  that  rooster  crow,  no  wonder  the  preachers 
have  been  trying  to  destroy  all  the  chickens  from  that 
day  to  this.  From  Strasburg  we  went  to  Cologne  and 
from  there  to  Brussels,  and  then  to  Waterloo.  There 
we  saw  a  tremendous  monument  with  a  large  lion  on  it, 
looking  over  towards  France.  Its  angry  look  seemed  to 
say,  "  If  you  all  want  any  more,  come  on."  They  tore 
that  lion  limb  from  limb  once,  but  the  Belgians  put  it 
up  again.  It  was  pleasant  to  see  the  place  where 
Marshal  Ney  swept  over  the  plain.  Napoleon  forced 
a  guide  into  his  service.  As  he  sat  on  his  horse  looking 
over  the  field  he  asked  the  guide  if  there  was  any  ob- 


LECTURES. ,  235 

struction.  He  wanted  Marshal  Ney  to  charge.  The 
guide  shook  his  head.  That  shake  of  the  head  turned 
down  the  pages  of  Napoleon's  history,  aud  changed  the 
map  of  the  old  country.  As  Marshall  Ney  went 
thundering  towards  the  enemy,  suddenly  they  came  to 
a  deep  cut.  It  was  a  road,  a  chasm  wide  and  deep  and 
awful ;  every  horse  stood  upon  his  hind  feet.  The  front 
ranks  plunged  in  until  they  filled  it  up,  then  the  others 
passed  over  the  bodies  of  the  horses  and  their  riders. 
It  was  the  death-blow  to  Napoleon.  Well,  there  was 
some  pleasure,  mingled  with  sadness,  in  passing  over 
Waterloo.  They  show  you  where  Napoleon  sat,  where 
the  Duke  of  Wellington  sat.  We  went  from  Brussels  to 
Antwerp.  Sir  Joshua  Reynolds  said  when  he  first  went  to 
Rome,  "  He  did  not  like  the  pictures."  The  second  trip 
he  liked  them  better  and  the  third  trip  he  was  fascinated. 
I  am  like  Sir  Joshua  on  the  first  trip.  I  saw  one  thing 
that  struck  me  as  a  piece  of  folly, — a  pulpit  that  a  man 
spent  his  whole  life,  forty-five  years,  in  making.  I 
looked  at  it  and  thought  what  a  pity  he  did  not  spend 
one  week  in  making  the  pulpit  and  the  rest  of  his  life, 
forty-four  years  and  fifty  one  weeks,  in  preaching  the 
gospel  from  it.  It  is  like  that  German  idiot  who  said 
he  would  like  to  spend  his  life  on  the  dative  case.  This 
man  utterly  threw  his  life  away.  Let  us  try  and  do 
something  that  will  be  useful  and  that  will  be  sustaining 
and  supporting.  From  Antwerp  we  went  to  London. 
We  went  through  Scotland.  I  always  wanted  to  go  to 
Scotland,  but  there's  one  objection  to  Scotland.     As  far 


236  PULPIT,    PEW    AXD    PLATFORM. 

as  I  could  see,  it  was  always  raining.  A  friend  of 
mine  said  to  a  passer-by:  "  Look  here,  boy,  does  it  always 
rain  here?"  "Yes,"  said  he,  "except  when  it  snows." 
We  traveled  all  through  Scotland.  Edinburgh  is  the 
loveliest  of  places.  London  is  the  heart  of  Britain,  but 
Edinbunr  is  the  head.  There's  the  old  church  of  St. 
Giles,  where  John  Knox  preached  his  celebrated  sermon 
which  roused  the  ire  of  the  beautiful  Queen  Mary.  It 
was  when  she  was  engaged  to  Darnley,  a  Roman 
Catholic,  whom  she  soon  afterwards  married.  "  My 
friends,"  he  said,  "  if  you  consent  to  the  marriage  of 
our  Sovereign  lady  with  an  infidel,  for  every  papist  is 
an  infidel,  you  do  all  in  your  power  to  drive  Jesus 
Christ  from  this  Realm." 

These  words  went  like  red-hot  thunderbolts  to  the 
heart  of  Mary.  The  next  day  she  sent  for  John  Knox. 
I  stand  on  the  spot  where  he  stood  as  he  confronted  the 
Queen.  She  said  to  him:  "How  long  will  you  treat 
me  so  ?  I  have  tried  to  reconcile  you.  I  have  done  all 
I  could  do  to  win  your  favor  and  confidence,  and  yet  you 
persist  in  your  cruel  conduct.  It  must  cease."  She 
burst  into  tears.     Knox  stood  there  like  a  statue. 

"  Madame,"  he  replied,  "  I  will  do  all  in  my  power 
as  your  loyal  subject  to  comfort  and  help  you  in  the 
right,  but  when  you  cross  the  path  of  my  duty  to  God, 
I  must  obey  God."  And  he  went  out.  This  is  the 
substance,  if  not  the  very  words,  of  their  conversation. 
But  the  willful  woman  married  the  Catholic,  and  his 
own  blood  marked  the  folly  of  her  course. 


LECTURES.  237 

One  afternoon  I  walked  up  on  Arthur's  Seat,  a  high 
hill  822  feet  above  Ediuboro',  and  had  a  fine  view  of  the 
surrounding  country.  A  lovelier  land  I  have  never 
seen.  Edinboro',  was  at  our  feet,  a  city  of  wide  streets 
and  parks  and  residences;  Midlothian  country  stretched 
away  on  the  left,  while  far  to  the  right  was  the  Frith  of 
Forth  and  the  highlands  beyond,  and  farther  still  the 
mountains,  the  purple  mountains  of  highland  heather, 
with  the  sheep  and  the  deer  lazily  cropping  the  herbage. 
We  were  the  guests  of  our  Baltimore  friend,  Henry  Tay- 
lor, Esquire,  who  delights  in  spending  his  time  occasion- 
ally on  his  "  native  heath."  With  his  good  wife  he  suc- 
ceeded in  making  our  visit  a  great  blessing  to  us  all. 
It  was  in  Edinburgh  that  the  famous  conversation  on 
oatmeal  occurred.  Dr.  Johnson,  the  distinguished  but 
uncouth  Englishman,  was  there  on  a  visit.  He  was 
asked  to  have  oatmeal,  of  which  Scotland  beats  the 
world.  "Oats,"  said  the  doctor  ;  "do,  what  do  I  want 
with  it  ?  We  feed  our  horses  with  our  oats,  and  you  feed 
your  men  with  it  here?"  "Yes,"  retorted  the  Scotch- 
man, "and  you  have  fine  horses  in  England  and  we 
have  fine  men  in  Scotland."  I  heard  a  better  one  than 
that  on  the  old  Englishman,  which  was  told  me  by  an 
Edinburgh  lawyer.  They  have  a  dish  they  call 
"haggis,"  a  sort  of  hash.  One  day  at  table  the  rough 
old  gentleman  tried  some  for  the  first  time.  The  land- 
lady said,  "Doctor,  how  do  you  like  the  'haggis?"' 
"  It  will  do  very  well  for  dogs,"  he  replied.  "  Will  you 
have  some  more,  doctor?"  she  quickly  added. 


238  PULPIT,    PEW  AND    PLATFORM. 

One  day  we  were  going  along  High  Street,  when  our 
attention  was  called  to  the  marble  bust  of  a  boy  over  a 
door,  with  this  inscription  :  "  Heave  away,  chaps,  I'm 
no  dead  yet."  They  told  me  that  a  short  time  before,  a 
tenement  house  had  fallen  in  and  caught  sixty  persons 
in  its  ruins.  They  worked  hard  getting  out  the  dead 
bodies.  Ou  the  second  day  the  workmen  heard  a  faint 
voice  down  under  their  feet.  They  listened.  "Heave 
away,  chaps,  I'm  no  dead  yet,"  came  in  feeble  accents. 
With  redoubled  energy  they  toiled  away,  and  soon 
brought  forth  the  little  fellow,  nearer  dead  than  alive  to 
all  appearances,  but  lie  was  saved.  Down  beneath  the 
ruins  of  sin  and  wretchedness  to  day  may  be  heard  the 
cry  of  perishing  souls.  Let  us  work  on,  dear  friends, 
and  God  will  reward  our  efforts  and  save  them  from 
everlasting  death.  Oh  !  in  that  brighter  world  no 
thought  will  so  thrill  us,  no  sight  so  bless  us,  as  the  re- 
membrance of  our  work  for  Jesus  and  the  redeemed  ones 
who  shall  greet  us  there.  "  They  that  turn  many  to 
righteousness  shall  shine  as  the  stars  forever  and  ever." 

"Rescue  the  perishing, 
Duty  demands  it, 

Strength  for  thy  labor  the  Lord  will  provide. 
Back  to  the  narrow  way, 
Patiently  lead  them, 
Tell  the  poor  wanderer  a  Saviour  has  died.' 

One  thing  more  about  this  large  Scotch  city,  and  then 
we  will  pass  on.  Though  they  have  more  than  two  hun- 
dred   and    fifty  thousand   people,  the  street-cars  do  not 


LECTURES.  239 

run  on  Sunday.  It  is  the  Lord's  day.  People  go  to 
church,  and  the  sweetness  and  charm  of  a  country  village 
possess  your  soul  as  you  saunter  along  with  the  multi- 
tude to  the  house  of  the  Lord.  I  want  to  make  one 
plea  for  our  Sabbath.  England  and  Scotland  observe  it 
better  than  we  do,  but  we  are  far  ahead  of  France  and 
Germany.  With  them  it  is  a  day  of  frolic  and  folly. 
God  save  the  Sabbath.  People  of  America,  let  us  stand 
by  this  sacred  bulwark  of  our  religion.  It  is  one  of  the 
safeguards  of  our  homes,  one  of  the  pillars  of  our 
church.  The  incoming  tide  of  immigration  is  fast  un- 
dermining this  blessed  wall;  we  must  go  out  to  meet  it, 
and  build  a  break-water  that  will  defy  the  very  tidal- 
waves  of  hell.  Our  Sabbath  must  be  preserved,  even 
if  we  have  to  say  to  the  Atlantic  as  we  have  said  to  the 
Pacific,  "Take  your  floating  population  to  some  other 
port." 

From  Edinboro'  we  passed  through  the  Trosachs  to 
Glasgow.  This  is  a  name  given  to  a  very  pretty  moun- 
tain and  lake  region,  which  you  may  visit  by  diverging 
a  little  from  the  regular  road  to  Glasgow.  At  a  rail- 
way station  we  took  a  stage,  twelve  of  us,  all  on  top,  and 
away  we  went  over  hill  and  dale.  In  a  few  hours  we 
reached  the  Trosachs  Inn,  a  most  inviting  place,  where 
we  tarried  for  the  night,  and  sat  and  read  by  the  blazing 
fires  in  the  middle  of  August.  Next  morning  we  had 
an  early  breakfast,  and  in  a  few  minutes  passed  over  the 
hills  and  through  primeval  forests,  suddenly  emerging 
on  beautiful  little  Loch  Katrine,  which  Scott  so  immor- 


240  PULPIT,    PEW   AND    PLATFOEM. 

talized  in  "  The  Lady  of  the  Lake/'  and  around  whose 
shores  Rob  Roy  sported  long  ago.  A  handsome  steamer, 
like-  a  pretty  toy,  bore  as  over  the  bosom  of  this  placid 
lake.  They  showed  us  all  the  historic  places,  even  the 
very  spot  where  the  hunter  stood  when  for  the  first  time 
his  eyv<  rested  on  the  sweet  lady  who  won  his  heart. 

"  And  ne'er  did  Grecian  chisel  trace, 
A  nymph,  a  naiad  or  a  grace, 
Of  finer  form  or  fairer  face. 
What  though  the  sun,  with  ardent  frown, 
Had  slightly  tinged  her  cheek  with  brown, 
Her  sportive  toil,  both  short  and  light, 
Which  dyed  her  glowing  line,  to  bright, 
Served,  too,  with  hasty  swell  to  show 
Brief  glimpses  of  a  breast  of  snow. 
"What  though  no  rule  of  courtly  grace 
With  measured  mood  had  trained  her  face. 
A  foot  more  light,  a  step  more  tin.', 
Ne'er  from  the  heath-llower  dashed  the  dew. 
E'en  the  slight  harebell  raised  its  head, 
Elastic  from  her  airy  tread. 
"What  though  upon  her  speech  there  hung 
The  accents  of  the  mountain  tongue, 
Those  silver  tones,  both  soft  and  clear, 
The  listener  held  his  breath  to  hear." 

Thev  pointed  out  the  place,  too,  where  the  hunter  lost 
his  splendid  steed  as  he  pursued  the  deer,  and  had  to 
give  up  the  chase.  But  if  he  lost  one  deer  he  found 
another,  and  it  turned  out  all  right  in  the  end.  It  is 
often  that  way  in  life;  we  don't  get  what  we  go  for,  but 
get  something  better.  I  heard  a  good  story  about  a  deer 
hunt  while  ou  this  tour: 


LECTURES.  241 

A  man  who  had  more  dollars  than  sense  went  out  for 
some  sport,  as  he  said.  He  hired  an  old  highlandcr  to 
go  with  him  and  start  the  deer.  So  the  old  man  put 
the  tourist  at  the  place  where  the  deer  would  likely 
come  along,  and  went  off  with  his  dog  to  get  him.  The 
young  American  had  never  seen  a  deer,  much  less  killed 
one,  but  he  knew  it  all,  and  stood  ready  with  his  gun  to 
slay  the  victim.  By  and  by,  he  heard  something  like 
a  \vao;on  and  team  coming  down  the  mountain.  You 
know  a  deer  makes  an  awful  noise  running.  Once  an 
Irishman  was  put  on  a  stand,  and  soon  the  deer  came 
leaping,  plunging,  careering  over  brush  and  bush,  and 
passed  on.  "Pat,  why  didn't  you  shoot?"  cried  the 
hunters.  "  And  what's  the  use  of  wasting  the  ammuni- 
tion," said  Pat;  "if  you  let  him  alone  he  will  kill  him- 
self." Well  the  old  highland  hunter  jumped  a  splendid 
buck,  and  he  came  tearing  down  the  mountain,  his  head 
up,  great  spreading  horns,  and  his  little  white  tail  like 
a  Aug  of  truce  only  asking  the  right  way.  It  scared 
the  fallow  so  badly  that  he  jumped  behind  a  tree  and  let 
the  deer  pass  on.  Soon  the  old  hunter  came,  and  said, 
"Why  didn't  you  kill  him,  mon  ?"  "Kill  what?" 
"  The  deer."  "  What  deer  V*  "  Didn't  the  deer  come 
by  here?"  "I  haven't  seen  any  deer.  I  saw  the  devil 
pass  here  just  now.  He  had  a  rocking-chair  on  his  head 
turned  upside-down  and  a  white  cotton  handkerchief  in 
his  coat-tail  pocket,  and  he  was  running  like  a  blue 
streak.  If  that's  what  you  call  a  deer,  take  me  home." 
No  more  deer-hunting  for  him. 
16 


242  PULPIT,    PEW  AND    PLATFORM. 

-  Our  boat  is  about  to  sail,  and  we  must  hurry  on  to 
Liverpool,  and  on  the  17th  of  August,  I  think,  we 
moved  out  and  headed  for  dear  old  America.  No 
special  incident  marked  our  voyage.  We  struck  sev- 
eral days  of  rougli  weather,  which  laid  us  low,  but  we 
were  soon  on  our  feet  again.  The  magnificent  "  Umbria" 
was  our  home  on  the  deep,  and  we  made  the  trip  in  six 
and  one-half  days.  As  we  caught  a  glimpse  of  the  first 
light  on  this  shore  we  were  at  worship.  A  company 
had  collected  in  the  steru  of  the  boat,  and  with  singing 
and  prayer  were  enjoying  the  hour  with  God,  when  sud- 
denly the  light  burst  upon  our  view.  I  was  talking  at 
the  time  and  called  their  attention  to  this  the  first  evidence 
that  we  were  nearing  home,  and  I  could  but  express  the 
hope  that  as  the  grand  old  ship  which  is  bearing  us  all  to 
our  eternal  home,  shall  near  the  shore,  we  may  all  be 
found  as  happy  as  we  were  that  hour  to  be  so  near  the 
end  of  our  glorious  voyage.  Soon  the  pilot  came  aboard 
and  brought  us  all  safe  to  shore.     So  may  it  be  at  last. 

"When  ;it  last  I  near  the  shore, 
Ami  the  fearful  breakt  rs  roar, 
'Twixt  me  and  the  peaceful  rest, 
Then,  while  leaning  on  thy  breast, 
May  I  hear  thee  say  to  me, 
*  Fear  not,  I  will  pilot  thee.'  " 


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